Harry Potter and the True Heir of Slytherin
by Regina Del Serpente
Summary: Takes place after HP4. Krum's in his last year. Harry falls for the new student at Hogwarts and is tempted by Dark Magic. For mature readers.
1. Goodbye, Privet Drive!

The True Heir of Slytherin  
  
Chapter One: "Goodbye, Privet Drive!"  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
For Harry, the summer holidays came and went too soon. Perhaps it went by fast because his fear of Voldemort was the only thing on his mind, and nothing else seemed to matter; not the time, not the day, not the month.  
  
True, though, Harry was nonetheless relieved that the holidays were almost over, for he would soon be returning to Hogwarts, his true home. No more worrying about Voldemort while he was at Hogwarts (for everybody knew that Voldemort was afraid of the Headmaster Dumbledore).  
  
But of course, the holidays weren't over yet. There was still about 5 weeks left, and Harry couldn't help but think that within those 5 weeks would Voldemort finally make his move. Perhaps Harry wouldn't have been so worried if he was at the Weasley's, but at his aunt and uncle's, he knew he wasn't safe. No way would his Aunt or Uncle even try to save him if Voldemort did show up. They would simply flee, leaving Harry alone and defenseless.  
  
It was the night after Harry's 15th birthday when he finally felt somewhat safe. His godfather, Sirius Black, had sent him a letter which said:  
  
***  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
Happy Birthday! I thought you might like to know that I'll be showing up at the Dursley's soon. Don't worry about me being caught because the Ministry is too busy tracking down Death Eaters to worry about me. I can't tell you when I'll show up in case this note is intercepted, but just be ready for anytime this week. I'd also like to introduce myself to your Aunt and Uncle, and see if I can't get them to ease up on you a bit.  
  
-Sirius  
  
****  
  
So for everyday of that week, Harry waited. He waited for what seemed like ages. Monday passed, then Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. On Friday morning, Harry was worried that something had happened to Sirius. What if he had gotten caught by the Ministry? No, that was silly. He'd been avoiding them for 2 years, how could he all of a sudden get caught? But no matter how hard Harry tried to convince himself that Sirius was ok, he couldn't help but notice that the Ministry was indeed keeping a close watch on Privet Drive. Ever since the Minister, Cornelius Fudge, had finally accepted the fact that Voldemort had risen again, he had ordered that the Ministry make random checks on Harry, and make sure he was alright. They would sometimes send owls, and at other times Harry would swear that he saw a man in a purple cloak watching him from th corner of Privet Drive. The extra security did make Harry feel a little safer, but he thought it would be better if they sent aurors to watch him instead.  
  
But those worried thoughts of Sirius kept filling Harry's head. What if Sirius showed up during one of those random checks?  
  
Harry stayed in his room for most of the morning, but at 11:00 am, he decided to go downstairs for some food. He climbed down the stairs and made his way into the kitchen, expecting everyone to be in the living room. How very wrong he was. He walked into the kitchen only to see Dudley, his Uncle Vernon and his Aunt Petunia all sitting at the table. And sitting with them was Sirius.  
  
Harry's mouth tried to form words, but he merely dropped his jaw and let out a gasp. Everyone turned to face Harry as he entered the room. Sirius smiled at him, looking much healthier than the last time he saw him.  
  
"Hi Harry," he said, smiling even more, if it was possible.  
  
The Dursleys remained silent, as if wanting to shoo Sirius out of their house, but were far too afraid to do so.  
  
"W - What are you doing here?" Harry asked, dumbfounded and hoping that his question didn't sound too rude.  
  
"Well, I told you I'd introduce myself, didn't I?" Sirius said, as he chuckled at the expression on the Dursleys' faces.  
  
Dudley seemed to have had enough of the introduction, because he very quickly got up and ran out of the kitchen for fear. Petunia seemed to want to go after him, but decided not to.  
  
"But ... the Ministry ... they might see you during the day ... I thought you would come at night-"  
  
"Don't worry about the Ministry, Harry, things have been settled," Sirius answered.  
  
It took a while for Harry to figure this out. What did he mean, "things have been settled"?  
  
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, "Sirius, what if they show up-" "Harry, it's ok," Sirius said reassuringly.  
  
Something about Sirius's expression made Harry sense what was going on. Harry was hoping beyond hope what he knew was impossible, but he couldn't stop himself from smiling. Sirius must have read Harry's mind, because he smiled and nodded his head at Harry.  
  
"You're - you're free?" Harry stuttered.  
  
"Yeah, I am," Sirius replied.  
  
"But how? Did they catch Wormtail?"  
  
"No, Harry, they haven't caught him, but they did witness him attempting to get money out of Gringotts," Sirius answered, "Apparently, he had quite a bit of money in there. I suppose he thought the goblins wouldn't recognize him, and he was right, but the other witches and wizards in Gringotts did." Sirius paused and shook his head, "That idiot never had much sense. Anyhow, the witnesses reported what they had seen to the Ministry, and I guess that was enough for them to relieve me of all charges ... I did have a little help from Professor Dumbledore, though."  
  
Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. His godfather wasn't a convicted murderer anymore. He knew this meant that he would surely be able to live with him now, seeing as how Sirius was now his legal guardian.  
  
"I can live with you now!" Harry exclaimed before he could stop himself. Sirius smiled and nodded. Harry turned his eyes on the Dursleys. "Did you here that? I don't have to live with you anymore!"  
  
Harry expected to see his Aunt and Uncle jumping with joy, but instead, they remained calm, if not angry about the whole situation.  
  
"Aren't you happy?" Harry asked, with his heart sinking. Surely they didn't want him to stay at Privet Drive?  
  
"You lied," Uncle Vernon snarled through gritted teeth. Aunt Petunia kept a thin mouth, as though she was sucking on a lemon, with her arms crossed, obviously furious.  
  
Sensing the potential danger in their attitudes, Sirius got to his feet and stood next to Harry, putting his hand on Harry's shoulder.  
  
"Huh?" Harry asked, "lied about what?"  
  
"Him!" Aunt Petunia shrieked, pointing at Sirius. Harry looked at Sirius, then back at the Dursleys. It took him a while to figure out what she meant, but it finally came to him like a slap in the face. He remembered that he purposely never told the Dursleys that Sirius was innocent.  
  
"Oh, that," He murmured, "Uh oh."  
  
"HOW DARE YOU!" Aunt Petunia cried in a shrill voice, "Of all the nerve! We were terrified of an innocent man for 2 years! And you NEVER told us! Is this your idea of a joke??"  
  
"Mrs. Dursley," Sirius interrupted, "I'm sure Harry had his reasons for-"  
  
"And you!" Uncle Vernon roared, pointing a fat index finger at Sirius, "How dare you stick up for him!"  
  
"But-" Harry stuttered.  
  
"Just go!" Uncle Vernon shouted, "Take the boy and go! And never, NEVER come back!!!"  
  
Harry tried to stay and explain, but Sirius pulled him back and directed him out of the kitchen.  
  
Harry couldn't remember a time when he'd seen Uncle Vernon so mad. And Harry was starting to feel guilty about lying to them. This was the first time Harry could ever truly say he felt bad for lying to the Dursleys.  
  
But worst of all, Harry felt guilty about feeling so bad. After all, Sirius had been freed, and Harry didn't have to live on Privet Drive anymore. This should've been the happiest day of Harry's life...so why was he feeling so terrible?  
  
Harry thoughts were interrupted when Sirius walked through the kitchen door and right into Dudley, who had obviously been eavesdropping ever since he left the kitchen. And if Harry wasn't mistaken, he could've sworn that Dudley looked rather gloomy. Harry had only sen this expression on Dudley's face when his parents wouldn't buy him something he really wanted.  
  
Dudley stood silent and looked at both Harry and Sirius, then suddenly waddled away, leaving to sit in front of the T.V.  
  
"So," Sirius started, breaking an uneasy silence, "where's all of you're things?"  
  
"Er, in my room," Harry answered, pointing up the stairs.  
  
"OK, how about I get it all. You wait here," Sirius replied.  
  
"Sure, first door on the left - there isn't much," Harry replied.  
  
Sirius nodded and walked up the stairs. As he went, Harry couldn't help but wonder why he was so upset. Harry was happy to be leaving the Dursleys, but there was something about the whole situation that made him feel uneasy, as if there was danger just waiting for him once he left.  
  
Harry's trail of thoughts were broken by the clunking of Harry's trunk coming down the stairs."well," Sirius said, setting down the trunk at the bottom of the stairs, "Ready?"Harry took one last look around he household and he almost didn't want to leave. Harry shook his head of his weird feelings, and replied, "Yeah."  
  
And so, Sirius then pulled out a fork from the bottom of his coat pocket (and this is when Harry actually realized that Sirius had dressed as a muggle, to blend in with the Dursley's, most likely).  
  
"Portkey?" Harry asked.  
  
"You bet," Sirius replied, "It'll take us back to my place."  
  
"Oh," Harry answered, "Where do you live, anyways? I mean, now that your not hiding anymore."  
  
"Well, it's more or less on the outskirts of Godric's Hollow-"  
  
"That's where I used to live, right? In Godric's Hollow..before my parents died, I mean," Harry interrupted.  
  
"That's right," Sirius replied in a sort of solemn voice, the voice he always used when he spoke of Harry's parents, "you used to live right in Godric's Hollow, but you had to move when Voldemort was looking for you."  
  
Harry nodded, but didn't say anything. He felt it would be best to hold off talking about his parents until they got to Sirius'. Sirius must have understood what Harry was thinking, because he immediately changed the subject by holding out the fork.  
  
"Well, let's go," Sirius said as he put his other hand on Harry's trunk and instructed Harry to put one of his hands on Hedwig's cage. This was, as Harry figured, a way to make sure that his things went through the portkey with them.  
  
Harry hesitated for a second. He looked around the house once more.  
  
"See ya," he murmured under his breath to the house (particularly the cupboard under the stairs). He reached out his hand and put a firm grip on top of the fork.  
  
"My place," Sirius muttered, and Harry guessed that he was telling the portkey where to send them.  
  
Harry felt something tugging on his navel and soon everything around his was blurry. He could feel himself being pulled forward at an unimaginable speed. After about three seconds, things began to slow down and the setting around him began to take form. The spinning stopped, and Harry's navel was no longer being pulled.  
  
Harry looked around him and couldn't believe his eyes. Sirius' house was a huge castle.  
  
Sirius took the fork out of Harry's grasp and set it down on the mantel- piece which was behind him. The mantel-piece was made of a richly-furnished wood and hung over an extravagant fireplace which looked as though it could suit a king.  
  
Harry looked around the room he was now in. He assumed it to be the living- room. It was very large; much larger than the Dursley's. In fact, Harry was sure that the first floor of the Dursley's home could probably fit into this room about 3 times.  
  
The room was enormous and was furnished with very beautiful and rich furniture. The walls were made of a smooth grey stone and candles hung in mid-air, much like inside the Great Hall at Hogwarts.  
  
Pictures hung all over the walls of all sorts of people. They all waved and winked at Harry. A few of them even gave Harry welcoming words.  
  
There were large windows lining the walls which looked out upon vast gardens and a small river. Birds could be heard from outside, chirping away happily.  
  
"Woah," was all Harry could manage to say.  
  
"Nice, eh?" Sirius asked, looking around the room as well, "I just bought it yesterday. Do you like it?"  
  
"You just bought it yesterday?" Harry echoed, "where'd you get the money??"  
  
"The Ministry," Sirius replied cooly, "let's just say that it's a little compensation for everything. It's their way of saying, 'sorry for putting you in Azkaban for all those years.' And seeing as how it was Barty Crouch Sr. who condemned me, they gave me all the money he left behind after he died. I'd say you and I are both fairly rich now, Harry."  
  
Harry blinked stupidly. He couldn't believe what he was hearing, or seeing. He never would've guessed that Sirius lived in a place like this.  
  
"It's awesome," Harry said in awe.  
  
Sirius smiled brightly at the look on Harry's face.  
  
"Well, c'mon," he said, "I'll show you you're room."  
  
He took out his wand and pointed it at Harry's stuff. "Wingardium Leviosa," he muttered, and his things rose about a foot off the ground. "You can just push those along," he told Harry.  
  
Sirius led the way out of the room and Harry pushed his trunk ahead of him. Sirius was pulling Hedwig's cage. They left the room and walked down a long hallway which was decorated with paintings, gargoyles and floating candles. The floor was draped in a dark red carpet.  
  
Harry and Sirius reached the end of the hallway and turned right, which led them up a grand staircase with a crystal chandelier hanging from above it.Once they reached the top of the stairs, they found themselves in yet another hallway, much like the one they were just in, but this one had more doors in it. When they were halfway down the hall, Sirius stopped and opened a door to his left. He held it open and showed Harry in.  
  
"This is it," he said as Harry walked inside. Harry couldn't believe his eyes. He felt his jaw drop as he looked around. In the middle of the enormous room was a king size four-poster bed with black curtains. The bed also had black sheets. The entire room looked very medieval.  
  
On either side of the bed were gigantic windows which gave a great view of the river (known as Godric's River), which ran beside the house.  
  
There was a well-sized fireplace on the left-hand side of the room, and to the right he saw a massive closet. Beside the closet, Harry could see a door which led into what looked like a bathroom.  
  
"This is incredible!" Harry exclaimed, looking up at Sirius.  
  
"I'm glad you like it," Sirius replied, patting Harry on the shoulder.  
  
"I love it," Harry replied. If only the Dursleys could see him now, oh how jealous they would be.  
  
"Well," Sirius continued, "I'll let you get settled down for a bit." He walked back towards the door and added, "I'll be in the living-room---the room we arrived in, that is, if you need me."  
  
Harry nodded and Sirius left the room, closing the door behind him. As he did, Harry's things gently settled onto the floor.  
  
Harry opened Hedwig's cage, who was looking anxious to explore the garden. She nipped his hand affectionately and soared off through the open window.  
  
After a while of investigating his room, Harry sat down on his new bed. It was extremely soft and comfortable.  
  
He laid down and relaxed a bit, thinking about how he was going to invite Ron and Hermione over soon. His thoughts soon trailed back to the Dursleys, and his heart sank. He had a strange feeling that they were in danger. It was weird, though. Harry hated the Dursleys. Why was he so worried about them?  
  
Harry thought back to right before he left Privet Drive. That last look he had of the cupboard--his last look at his furious Aunt and Uncle--his last glance at the gloomy Dudley. For some reason, Harry had a strange feeling that he wouldn't see any of that again. If only Harry knew how right he was.  
  
__________________________________________________  
Hope you all liked it!!  
  
-Summer :) 


	2. The Big News

Chapter 2: The Big News ____________________________________________  
  
Harry awoke from a nap he never meant to take. His new bed was so comfortable that he must have just dozed off while lying there. Harry looked at his watch. It was 6:00 pm. He decided to go downstairs to see Sirius. He got off his bed to see Hedwig sitting on the window-ledge with a dead mouse hanging from her mouth by it's tail.  
  
Harry stood up and, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes, walked out of his room and into the hallway. He yawned a bit and put his glasses back on. It took him a while to adjust to the look of his whereabouts, because he could've sworn the whole ordeal was just a dream he had had while napping. His heart leapt knowing that it was all real.  
  
He walked down the hallway and towards the Grand Staircase, except he was paying more attention to his surroundings this time. He counted all of the doors he could see (25 so far) and he examined all of the pictures he came across. He saw a painting of a skinny, black-haired man that caught his eye. The man in the painting looked at Harry and smiled. Harry smiled back, feeling a bit awkward. He didn't know who the man was, but by the looks of his clothes, he was from about 100-300 A.D, Harry wasn't exactly sure.  
  
"Hello there," the man said as Harry walked by.  
  
Harry stopped. "Er, hi," he replied.  
  
The man looked oddly familiar, and Harry couldn't help but get the feeling that this man wasn't a stranger, and that Harry somehow knew him.  
  
"So, better than where you used to live?" the painting asked.  
  
"Oh, much better," Harry answered, remembering the torture he long-endured while at the Dursley's.  
  
"Where did you used to live anyways, Harry?" the man asked.  
  
Harry's mind went blank for a second. How did the man in the painting know his name?  
  
"Um, the Dursley's," Harry answered, "Er, a muggle family - a mean muggle family."  
  
The man in the painting laughed . "well, I'm glad you're here. This house has been empty for about half a century now. It's been quite boring."Harry paused, and then asked the painting the question that was in his mind. "Um, sorry to be rude, but have we met before? I mean, you know my name and all- "  
  
"Sirius has told me all about you," The painting replied, "Well, all that I've asked about, anyways. He says you're pretty famous. Odd. I hadn't heard of you until he mentioned you were coming here." Harry could feel his face getting red.  
  
"Well," Harry continued, "You know my name, but I don't seem to know yours."  
  
The painting looked a bit surprised, as if Harry was supposed to know his name.  
  
"What?" the man laughed, "Don't you recognize old Godric Gryffindor? Wow, I thought they might've had at least one painting of me at Hogwarts, but I guess not."  
  
Harry was in shock. He was talking to Godric Gryffindor. THE Godric Gryffindor - or, at least a painting of him.  
  
"You - you're Godric Gryffindor?" Harry stammered.  
  
The man nodded with an expression of pride in his face.  
  
"Wow," Harry exclaimed, "I'm IN Gryffindor House at Hogwart's! This is amazing!"  
  
Godric laughed a bit at Harry's excited reaction.  
  
"Of course you are," he smiled, "All those of my blood are sorted into my house."  
  
Harry stopped smiling. He could feel his jaw drop an inch. Did he just hear what he thought he heard? This had to be a mistake, Harry thought.  
  
"Gryffindor blood, did you say?" Harry repeated.  
  
Godric stopped smiling and looked at Harry curiously. "What, you didn't know?" he asked slowly.  
  
Harry shook his head. What was Godric talking about?  
  
"I see," Godric continued, looking rather hesitant, "Well, um, maybe it would be best if you asked Sirius about it then. Perhaps I'm not the one to explain it all to you."  
  
Harry didn't wait around to reply, but instead found himself running down the hallway and down the stairs as fast as he could. He ran down the hallways and into the living-room where Sirius sat in front of the fireplace, reading what looked like the Daily Prophet.  
  
Harry ran towards him and jumped into the chair across from Sirius.Sirius looked up and smiled at him. "Explored it all already?" he asked, looking back down at the paper.  
  
"I just saw a painting of Godric Gryffindor," Harry panted, out of breath from running all of the way there.  
  
Sirius looked up at him again. "Nice guy, eh?" he said. "Been here since this place was built." "Am I related to him?" Harry asked before he could stop himself.  
  
Sirius looked at Harry more seriously this time. He set down the paper, still staring at Harry.  
  
"How-"  
  
"He told me I have Gryffindor blood in me," Harry interrupted.  
  
Sirius raised his eyebrows in shock. "Oh," Sirius answered, with a slight chuckle, "I didn't even think he'd recognize you." Sirius folded up the paper and set it on the floor.  
  
"Dumbledore told me not to tell you yet, but I guess I have to." Sirius took a deep breath. "Harry," he said, "indeed you are related to Godric Gryffindor. You're his last remaining direct descendant."  
  
Harry found it hard to breathe after Sirius said this. His hands were shaking and his heart was pounding. He blinked his eyes in disbelief. Sirius, however, continued to speak.  
  
"On your father's side, of course, seeing as how Lily was muggle-born."  
  
Harry looked up at Sirius blankly. "Why hasn't anyone ever told me?" he asked sadly. Did anyone ever even think of telling him this startling news?  
  
"Well," Sirius answered solemnly, "Mainly because everyone who knew (myself, a few Ministry workers, and the Hogwarts staff) didn't know whether you were ready or not to handle the truth. I mean, you're famous enough as it is, imagine how famous you'd be once everyone found out that you're Godric's Heir."  
  
Harry had the feeling that Sirius was holding back on him. There was something he wasn't telling Harry, and Harry was going to find out what it was.  
  
"There's more to it than that," Harry persisted. Sirius looked at Harry awkwardly and picked up the paper again, unfolding it.  
  
"So," he said, changing the subject, "Did you hear that Rita Skeeter's an animagus?"  
  
"Sirius," Harry pleaded. "Please, Sirius. I need to know. Why didn't Dumbledore want you telling me anything? Sirius, please."Sirius looked at Harry with somewhat guilty eyes. He took a deep sigh and set the paper down again. He leaned back in his chair, placing his hands on the arm-rests. "I guess there's no use in lying to you," Sirius continued, avoiding Harry's eyes. "Harry, Dumbledore just didn't want to frighten you. No one did. That's why we didn't tell you. It's not that any of us wanted to hide the fact from you-"  
  
"Frighten me?" Harry asked. "Why should I be frightened?"  
  
"Well, Harry, I wish I didn't have to explain it all to you by myself, but here it goes." Sirius took another deep breath and stood up, placing an arm on the mantel-piece above the fireplace. "Well, for as long as anyone can remember, there has been a strong conflict between the Slytherins and the Gryffindors at Hogwarts. The main reason for that is because a long time ago, just after Hogwarts was built, Salazar Slytherin turned evil. He was once best friends with Godric Gryffindor, but when he became a dark wizard, they became each other's worst enemies.  
  
"Salazar Slytherin wasn't the first wizard to ever turn evil, but he was the first wizard to make Dark Magic popular. He invented a lot of dark arts, including some of the worst curses known to date. Curses like the Three Unforgivable Curses. He used dark magic to kill many innocent people, and, in the end, he killed Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff. Godric then, out of vengeance, killed Salazar. Of course, by that time, all four of the founders had families, and the Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors all hated the Slytherin family. The Slytherins disliked them all in return, but especially the Gryffindors. And thus, the conflict began. The Gryffindor family and the Slytherin family fought and killed each other for centuries afterwards, each trying to extinguish one another's family.  
  
"Eventually, the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs let go of their grudges, but continued to dislike the Slytherin family. The conflict between Slytherins and Gryffindors reached as far as Hogwarts where it still lives today.  
  
"For centuries, the Slytherins have been known as evil, and the Gryffindors as heroic. Both families eventually changed their names so as not to attract any attention from the enemy. The common name for the Slytherin family (as it is scarcely known now) is Ridge. The common name for the Gryffindor family was and still is Potter, and only the Ministry knows that."Wait a second," Harry cut in, trying to find room in his head for all this information, "Why should all of this frighten me?"  
  
"Well, isn't it obvious?" Sirius asked, "Harry, you know that Voldemort is the heir of Slytherin. He knows that you're the heir of Gryffindor. That's why he tried to kill you, and that's why he will stop at nothing to kill you now. It's all about honour to him. And I'm afraid that he's a lot stronger than he was before he killed your parents, and it is going to take a lot of time and sacrifice to stop him now--if it's even possible."  
  
Something in Harry's mind clicked. So that's why Voldemort wanted him dead. That's why his parents died. Voldemort wanted to kill off the Gryffindors, and killing Harry would surely do it.  
  
Harry tried to slow down his heart. But he still didn't know why this all should frighten him more than he was already. He already knew that Voldemort wanted him dead, so what was the big deal?  
  
"I still don't get it," Harry finally said, "I know Voldemort wants to kill me. I'm no more frightened now than I was when he rose again."  
  
"Well, Harry, I'm not finished yet," Sirius continued, taking another deep breath, "Harry, death isn't what's going to frighten you. Pressure to succeed is. Pressure to fight to stay alive. For centuries, the only ones who have been able to stop the Slytherin heirs were the Gryffindors heirs. I'm not sure even Dumbledore could stop Voldemort now. But you, Harry, you have the power. You've shown that since you were a baby. Harry, you have to stay alive no matter what. If Voldemort succeeds in killing you, then the Slytherins will succeed in vanquishing the Gryffindors, and then who knows what will happen. Voldemort will be unstoppable. The world will be thrown into chaos, and dark magic will prevail. It's a very frightening concept to take into mind."  
  
Harry quite agreed with him. His head was spinning. He didn't know what to say.  
  
"Now," Sirius continued, "Harry, do you understand why we didn't want to tell you until you were a bit older and more prepared?"  
  
Harry nodded. He still couldn't form any words, but he was well aware that his mouth was hanging open now. A sudden drop in his stomach made him feel as though he was going to be sick if he didn't close his mouth. He closed his mouth, but the sickness didn't go away. Breaking the silence, Harry finally spoke."If the Slytherin family is so evil, then why are they honoured at Hogwarts by having their own house?"  
  
"Well," Sirius answered, "Although Salazar was a very evil wizard in his later years, he was actually very caring and kind in the beginning of his life. He achieved many great things in his early years which is what Hogwarts honours him for."  
  
"What made him go bad?" Harry asked, expecting a story of great length, but instead, Sirius's answer was very short and rather blunt.  
  
"Nobody knows," Sirius answered.  
  
"Nobody at all?" Harry asked.  
  
"Well, possibly his family, but they've never told anyone. And I shouldn't expect Voldemort to tell anyone now, either."  
  
Sirius, who had kept his eyes on the fire for the entire story, looked up at Harry finally. His black hair slightly hung down over his eyes, just like Harry's did. Looking at him carefully, though, Harry could tell just how upset Sirius was.  
  
"Harry," he continued in a very forlorn voice, "I'm so sorry you had to hear all of this. I know I'm probably not explaining things well enough, but if you have any questions-"  
  
Harry shook his head. He didn't seem to have any more questions. Things in his mind began to make sense all on their own. His head, which five minutes ago had been swarming with thousands of questions, was now very heavy with information, and Harry was once again feeling very tired. More than anything, Harry just wanted to yell and shout at the top of his lungs to let out all of the emotions he was feeling. Punching a wall, even, might have satisfied him. But instead, he stood up and looked into the flames within the fireplace. They seemed to dance in front of him and for some strange reason, Harry felt like reaching out and touching them. He wanted the flames to burn him so that he could make sure that he wasn't dreaming - that this entire day had been real. He continued to look at the fire for what must have been minutes before Sirius's voice finally snapped him out of it.  
  
"Are you alright?" he asked, putting his hand on Harry's shoulder.  
  
"Yeah," Harry lied, "I'm just tired." The last part wasn't a complete lie.  
  
Harry looked up at Sirius and stared into his eyes for a bit, then added, "I think I'm gonna go to bed now."Both he and Sirius knew it was too early to go to bed, but Sirius didn't argue or say anything about the time.  
  
"You're not hungry, are you?" he asked, "I'd imagine you haven't eaten for a bit."  
  
Although Sirius was right, Harry knew he would definitely be sick all over if he ate anything.  
  
"No, thanks," he answered. Harry then gave somewhat of a smile to Sirius, turned around and began to walk out of the room. "Goodnight," he murmured as he left.  
  
"Goodnight," Sirius called after him, trying to sound happy, but failing.  
  
Harry began to walk very fast. He wanted to write to Ron and Hermione, and tell them both about the big news - not what Sirius had just told him, but about moving out of the Durlsey's and living with Sirius.  
  
As Harry passed Godric's painting, he could hear Godric saying something, but he wasn't in a talkative mood, so he kept walking, pretending he hadn't heard anything.  
  
Harry walked into his room and closed the door behind him. Hedwig was happily asleep in her cage.  
  
Harry got his trunk and opened it, grabbing a quill and some parchment.  
  
He decided to write to Ron first. He sat at his desk and an began to write.  
  
In the letter, he thanked Ron for the birthday present he had sent to Harry on his birthday (a monthly subscription to "Quidditch World").  
  
He told Ron all about how he had moved, and invited Ron over.  
  
After he was done the letter, he wrote Hermione a similar letter, and invited her over as well.  
  
He folded up each letter and stood up. He strode over towards Hedwig's cage, and gently poked her to wake her up.  
  
"Here," he said, giving the two letters to her, which she put in her beak. "For Ron and Hermione. Sorry for giving you two at a time, but I know you can handle it, right?"  
  
Hedwig fluffed out her feathers and spread her wings with dignity, trying to say that she most certainly could handle it. With a great swoosh, she soared through the room and out the window, into the darkening sky.  
  
Now Harry really felt like he could go to bed. It was now 8:30 pm. Harry changed into his pajamas, and closed the window which Hedwig had flown through. He climbed into his bed and covered himself in blankets. He took off his glasses and set them on his bedside table.  
  
"Out," he muttered, and the candles in the room blew out on command.  
  
Harry laid back, trying not to think of the day's events. Sure enough, as he began to fall asleep, his mind wandered off into normally weird and happy dreams. With a tiny snore, Harry fell asleep.  
  
__________________________________________________  
-Summer :) 


	3. The Deadly Surprise

Chapter 3: The Deadly Surprise  
  
_____________________________________________  
  
Harry was playing quidditch and there it was- the golden snitch. He sped towards it on his Firebolt broom when the Bulgarian beaters cut him off. They pretended to mistake his head for a bludger and began to beat his head back and forth. Harry couldn't feel the bats, but he could hear them against his head. Click, click, click, they went. The clicking got louder and louder. Harry yelled for them to stop as he lost control of his broom and began falling - fast. He was about to hit the ground. It was getting closer. Click, click, click... He was going to hit the ground- BAM!  
  
Harry awoke with a start. What a weird dream. Click, click, click... Harry looked at his window. His window was now, for some reason, closed, and Hedwig was tapping on it to get in.  
  
"That was fast," Harry muttered as he sat up. He looked at his watch. Harry couldn't read it, then he remembered his glasses. He reached for them at his bedside table and put them on. He looked at his watch again. It was noon. Harry shook his head in disbelief. He had slept for almost 14 hours. How odd.  
  
Click, click, click...Harry pulled the covers off of him and climbed out of bed. He stretched his arms and yawned as he did so, then made his way to the window and opened it. Hedwig soared in and dropped a letter at Harry's feet. Only one letter. That was odd. Harry picked up the letter and read it. It said:  
  
-----------  
  
Hey Harry!  
  
It's Ron. Hermione's at my house. No wonder you weren't replying to the letter I sent to the Dursley's. It must have arrived just after you left. The letter was inviting you over, but Hermione and I would love stopping by your new place!! I hope you don't mind if we showed up today because Percy is becoming annoying and Hermione and I both want to leave as soon as possible.  
  
We'll probably show up around noon, hope that's ok. See you soon!  
  
Ron and Hermione  
  
P.S. We'll be using floo powder.  
  
----------------  
  
Harry folded up the letter and smiled. He couldn't wait to see Ron and Hermione. He had to get dressed. They were going to be there any minute. Harry quickly got dressed and ran his hand through his hair. It was no use trying to brush it, seeing as how it would always stick up anyways.  
  
Harry walked out of his room with a slight skip in his step. Ron's letter had made Harry forget all about what Sirius had told him the previous night, so at that point, Harry could not have been happier.  
  
Harry stopped at Godric's picture. He was sleeping happily in his frame and Harry decided he would just wake up his ancestor once Ron and Hermione had arrived. Harry could just imagine the looks on their faces once he told them that he was related to THE Godric Gryffindor. As Harry walked away, a sinking feeling hit his stomach. He suddenly began to remember everything he had learned the night before. Harry's slight skip faded into a solemn march. How was he going to tell Ron and Hermione about the ill news he had received? Harry tried to shut out the thoughts from his head, but they kept coming back. Harry sulked down the Grand Staircase. He looked straight ahead as he did. He couldn't keep his mind off of Voldemort. He couldn't help but think about what Sirius had said about Voldemort - "It's all about honour to him." What honour? Harry thought. What honour does a powerful dark wizard get out of killing a 15 year old boy?  
  
Harry shook his head of all those thoughts, and suddenly found himself walking past the living room. Harry turned around and (still solemnly) walked into the living room.  
  
Harry was shocked to see Sirius in there, talking to both Ron and Hermione. Ron was brushing dust off of himself, which obviously meant they had just arrived by floo powder.  
  
"Harry," Hermione exclaimed, "I'm so glad you're OK!" She ran over to him and gave Harry a hug. Harry wondered why girls always hugged people as a greeting. It was so weird...  
  
Hermione released him, and, to Harry's amazement, she had tears in her eyes.  
  
Harry was about to speak when Ron walked up to them and almost faked a smile. There was something very melancholy about Ron. He looked happy to see Harry, but also sad for some reason, almost pitiful.  
  
"What's wrong with you two?" Harry asked, bewildered.  
  
Hermione could no longer contain herself. She burst into silent tears and slightly turned away from Harry to hide her face. She was shaking her head in disbelief.  
  
"Hermione?" Harry said in a gentler voice.  
  
"Harry," Sirius interrupted, "Harry, I need to speak with you."  
  
Now even Sirius seemed rather void of happiness. Sirius nodded his head towards the far side of the room, where a beautiful ray of sunshine was coming through the stained-glass window.  
  
Harry, with one last look at Ron and Hermione, followed Sirius towards the window.  
  
There was definitely something wrong. Harry's mind began to once again flood with curious thoughts and suspicions.  
  
Harry looked at Sirius. Harry had never seen Sirius so sad before, save when he was almost sentenced to having the Dementor's Kiss performed on him at Hogwarts in Harry's third year.  
  
Once they had reached the window, Sirius turned slowly to Harry, and, in a quieter voice than normal, said, "Harry, there's something I need to tell you. Hermione and Ron already know, but-"  
  
"What is it?" Harry asked in almost a whisper. A sudden sense of foreboding came over Harry. He tried to prepare himself. Whatever Sirius was going to say was going to be absolutely awful, Harry knew it.  
  
"Harry, there's been an accident at the Dursley's" Sirius continued.  
  
Harry sighed loudly before he could stop himself. He didn't want to concern himself with whatever trouble the Dursleys were in. He had better things to think about than Dudley growing another pig's tail (which is what he expected Sirius to say, though deep in Harry's heart, he knew it was much worse than that).  
  
"Harry," Sirius said softly, trying to sound as calm as he could, "The Dursley's were killed."  
  
Harry didn't move or talk, nor did he take his eyes off of Sirius's face. Harry didn't even make any movements whatsoever that would imply that he had heard what Sirius had just said.  
  
Sirius put his arm on Harry's shoulder, and as he did so, Harry felt the heat from Sirius's hand meet Harry's shoulder, which was shaking uncontrollably, along with the rest of his body. And for that second in which Harry felt Sirius's hand touch him, Harry was brought back to his senses, and he suddenly realized that everything around him was real. And for that second in which Harry felt Sirius's hand on his shoulder, everything that his brain had taken in within the past two days became a reality. Suddenly, all the events of the past few hours; all the surprises, all the emotions, all the fear; hit Harry hard in the stomach. He was for sure going to be sick.  
  
"By who?" Harry finally managed to say, and even he noticed that his own voice was without any feeling or change of tone.  
  
Sirius took a deep breath and Harry knew what he was going to say before he even opened his mouth.  
  
"Voldemort did," Sirius answered, even softer now, "About an hour after we left them. I tried to warn them, Harry, but they wouldn't listen."  
  
"Warn them?" Harry said suspiciously, or rudely even, "You knew?"  
  
"The Ministry had known Voldemort's plan to attack for only a few days," Sirius continued in a sensitive voice, "and Dumbledore knew them also. He alone convinced the Ministry to believe I was innocent, regardless of the witnesses who saw Wormtail. Dumbledore knew you weren't going to be safe with the Dursley's. See, Harry, Dumbledore has secret connections with a certain Death Eater. That Death Eater told Dumbledore you were in danger-"  
  
"Snape?" Harry assumed aloud.  
  
"Yes," Sirius answered, "Severus is the spy within Voldemort's circle. And once I was freed, Dumbledore explained everything to me and told me to get you. I didn't hesitate. However, the Ministry was forcing me to sign a lot of papers regarding my new freedom, which held me up for a few days. So, in the meantime, the Ministry sent people to look after the Dursley's home until I got there."  
  
Sirius took a break from talking and looked hard at Harry. Harry could feel Sirius's hand slightly rubbing his shoulder, in a comforting way, just like a father.  
  
Then he continued, "Once I did get there, though, the Dursley's were afraid and thought I had come to kill them. I explained that I was innocent, but they were still suspicious, and your cousin, most of al, was still very scared. But I persisted, and told them of the danger they were in. They said they didn't believe they were in any danger. They said I could take you if I wanted, but they refused to take the Ministry's help and go into hiding."  
  
"I thought Voldemort couldn't go near them," Harry said, again in a toneless voice.  
  
"Nobody knows how he did it, Harry. But I assure you, you're safe here with me. Aurors have been putting spells and counter-curses on this place for years. There's no way Voldemort or any Death Eater can get in here. Voldemort's never ben able to get into Godric Gryffindor's castle."  
  
"Godric Gryffindor's Castle?" Harry asked, still with no sign of emotion, "So this is Godric's old home?"  
  
"Yes it is, "Sirius said, now wary of Harry's lacking emotions. "That article on their death is in this morning's Daily Prophet," he continued, "Ron and Hermione read it when they came here."  
  
Sirius continued to talk, but whatever he was saying, Harry never knew. Harry wasn't suffering from a lack of emotions, he was drowning in a flood of them. There were so many that he didn't know which one to feel. Harry turned towards the window. He put his elbows on the window ledge. The window was open and the wind was blowing a cool breeze on Harry's face. Harry thought he heard Sirius asking is he was ok, but he wasn't sure, because at that moment, Harry's stomach was once again punched hard by the pain and truth of reality. Then it happened. He leaned over the window and became sick. He vomited whatever little food was still in his stomach. When he was done, he pulled himself away from the window and found that he was very dizzy.  
  
"Harry-Harry?"  
  
But Harry no longer heard Sirius. Instead, he felt himself letting go of his consciousness and giving into his weariness. Harry passed-out, and his dreams were filled with nothing but visions of Voldemort laughing, and the Dursley's being tortured and killed.  
  
***  
  
"I think he's waking up," was the first thing that Harry heard when he came to, and he recognized the voice right away as Hermione's.  
  
"Thank goodness," he heard Ron say.  
  
Harry slowly opened his eyes to a blurry room. When his eyes finally managed to focus on his surroundings, he realized he was no longer in Godric's Castle - or was he?  
  
"Where am I?" he asked with a slight note of paranoia in his voice.  
  
Harry looked to his left, and saw Sirius sitting next to him. Harry was in some sort of hospital bed. Ron and Hermione were on his right side, standing over him. The room he was in slightly resembled the hospital wing at Hogwarts.  
  
"Relax, Harry," Sirius said gently, "you're still at home, just a part of it you haven't discovered yet."  
  
"Are you ok?" Ron asked anxiously.  
  
"Yeah," Harry said, sitting up a bit, "What happened?"  
  
"You passed out," Hermione said in a rather hush voice.  
  
Ron, Hermione and Sirius were all giving Harry mournful looks, and as they did, Harry suddenly remembered why he had passed out. Then, the feeling which had overtaken him earlier was threatening to do so once gain, but Harry wouldn't let it.  
  
Harry looked at his watch. It was now midnight.  
  
"How long have I been out of it?" he asked Sirius tiredly.  
  
"About 11 hours, maybe more," Sirius answered. He put his hand on Harry's and continued, "How do you feel?"  
  
It took a bit for Harry to be able to think of the right words to explain how he felt. The closest he came to a right answer was, "Confused, I guess."  
  
It was at that moment that Harry heard a familiar voice.  
  
"Guests must now move away from Master Harry, sirs and miss, he needs medical help, sirs and miss."  
  
Harry then saw what looked like a small child moving towards him, but he soon recognized it as a House Elf - a free House Elf at that, seeing as how it wore clothes. It's clothing looked like a doctor's uniform.  
  
Harry's heart leapt, thinking it was Dobby, but as the Elf came closer, Harry realized that it wasn't Dobby at all. It was female. She somewhat resembled Winky, on the exception that this Elf was much happier. The Elf was even happier, though, when she saw that Harry was awake.  
  
"Master Harry, sir! You're awake at last!" the Elf exclaimed, "Don't worry Master, sir, Lolly will take good care of you, sir!" And with that, the elf (Lolly, she was called) bowed and immediately scurried over to Harry, almost pushing aside Hermione and Ron. Lolly leant over Harry as far as she could and just barely managed to feel Harry's forehead. She then grabbed Harry's wrist and checked his pulse.  
  
"You seem fine, Master Harry Potter. How are you feeling, sir?" she said, looking at him happily. Her eyes were very penetrating and Harry almost got the impression that Lolly could read minds.  
  
"Better, I suppose," Harry replied, and it was then that Harry's stomach gave a mighty growl, "Just really hungry," he added.  
  
"Ah-hah," Lolly replied, smiling, "You, sir, haven't eaten since you came here, sir! I will tell the kitchens to make you, sir, a big, nice meal, master Potter, sir!" and with that, Lolly ran from the room.  
  
Harry looked at Sirius."We have House Elves?" Harry asked.  
  
Sirius nodded. Harry looked at Hermione, who looked like she wanted to protest, but was fighting with herself not to.  
  
Sirius must have noticed this, too, because he looked at her and quickly, but nicely added, "Free, and paid, House Elves."  
  
Hermione somewhat smiled, but then she looked at Harry and suddenly regained her melancholy appearance.  
  
Harry noticed the uncomfortable air surrounding them all. He knew they were all thinking about the same thing, but were too afraid to say anything about it. Harry decided to break the silence.  
  
"I can't believe they're dead," Harry said.  
  
Sirius, Ron, and Hermione all looked at him with a new kind of depression, or was it pity?  
  
Harry seemed to be the only one willing to talk about it. He was sad, yes, but not heartbroken, for he never loved the Dursley's. They were all far too ignorant and cruel to ever love, but Harry certainly never wanted them dead. There was only one person in the entire world whom Harry wished death upon. Voldemort.  
  
Harry now understood why he had passed out. His feelings for Voldemort overwhelmed him, along with the shock of the death of the Dursleys, as well as the constant fear of another attack.  
  
"I don't get why Voldemort killed them, though," Harry added in a toneless voice, almost as if he was talking to himself, "I mean, he wants ME dead, not the Dursleys. The Dursleys don't have anything to do with it, Sirius. The Gryffindor blood in on my dad's side, not my mom's side. It had nothing to do with them"  
  
Hermione and Ron looked at Harry in shock. Ron was cleaning out his ear to see if he heard right. 'Gryffindor Blood?' Harry could se Hermione whisper to herself in wonder.  
  
Sirius, however, took no notice of it. "They were looking for you, though, Harry. And when the Dursleys wouldn't tell them where you were, they killed them."  
  
"They?" Harry asked, "You mean there were other Death Eaters involved?"  
  
"Well, I'm not sure who else was with him. But it was more than just one dark wizard who did it."  
  
"Why do you say that?" Harry asked. He had a very bad feeling about the answer to his question, but it wasn't like things could get worse, could they?  
  
Sirius, Harry now noticed, was tightly clutching a rolled up copy of the Daily Prophet in his hand.  
  
"Is the article in that?" Harry asked, pointing at the newspaper.  
  
'Er, yeah," Sirius said, "Did you want to read it?"  
  
"Yeah," Harry answered, and Sirius gave him the paper.  
  
Harry unrolled the paper and noticed it was very bent and curvy, as though Sirius had been carrying it around for a long time.  
  
Harry took a deep breath and began to read:  
  
--------  
  
"You-Know-Who's Plan's Fail - Muggle Family Dead"  
  
It has been reported that on August 6th, at about 2:00 pm, He Who Must Not Be Named attempted an attack upon Harry Potter.  
  
You-Know-Who arrived at the house of Vernon and Petunia Dursley, Potter's aunt and uncle, and legal guardians. When the Dark Lord arrived, however, Potter was not home. He Who Must Not Be Named then killed Potter's Uncle and Aunt, as well as their 15 year old son, Dudley, Harry's cousin.  
  
"It's a shame," Minister Cornelius Fudge states, "but at least we got Harry away in time."  
  
As for Potter's whereabouts, the Ministry will not comment and it is therefor unknown to the public at this time.When the Ministry was questioned about the attacks, they refused to say much, but Reporter John Nickel met Mad-Eye Moody at the scene, and had a moment to speak with him.  
  
"No one's ever been able to penetrate a Family Protection Spell before," Moody reported after being asked about the attack. "There's no way in hell You-Know-Who pulled this off himself, regardless of how strong he's gotten. And none of 'dem Death Eaters could do it neither. If y'ask me, I'd say he's got a strong newbee on his side."  
  
The Ministry refuses to say anymore about the incident at this time.  
  
----------------  
  
Harry looked at Sirius.  
  
"Who could it have been?" he asked.  
  
"I don't know," Sirius sighed, "Nobody does. The aurors still haven't even really found out who the majority of Voldemort's supporters are."  
  
"But I thought that Snape was a spy," Harry replied as Ron and Hermione listened attentively (for they had no clue that Snape was a spy), "wouldn't he know who Voldemort's supporter's are?"  
  
"Not necessarily," Sirius answered gravely, "You see, Harry, Snape knows who all of the Death Eaters are, but the Death Eaters aren't Voldemort's only supporters. Harry, our world has, for a long time, neglected the fact that there are other powerful, and independent, Dark Wizards and Witches out there."  
  
"What?" Harry exclaimed, "Voldemort isn't the only one? Who else is there?!"  
  
"Only the Ministry knows," Ron answered.  
  
Harry looked at Ron, who seemed to have gotten paler over all the talk of Dark Wizards and Witches.  
  
"Then, does your father know?" Harry asked.  
  
"Nah," Ron sighed, "only the aurors and really important Ministry members know."  
  
"Oh," Harry replied quietly.  
  
As an eery silence was threatening to overtake them all again, Lolly came running into the room, with a large tray full of food.  
  
"Here you are, sirs and miss," Lolly smiled, while putting the tray down on Harry's bedside table.  
  
"How are you's feeling now, Harry Potter, sir?" she asked."Better, thanks," Harry replied while grabbing a sandwich off of the tray.  
  
At Harry's comment, Lolly smiled and started clapping excitedly.  
  
"Very good, master Potter, sire, very good!" she said, "You are very resilient, sir!"  
  
But Harry wasn't paying much attention. He didn't realize how hungry he actually was until he started eating. His thoughts, however, trailed back to the Dursleys. Harry imagined them dying over and over again in his mind, and he couldn't stop. What if he could have saved them? If he hadn't left, he could have saved them all.  
  
Harry now began to recall his last few minutes at number 4, Privet Drive. He began to remember the forlorn Dudley. Harry now began to realize why he felt so bad when he left the Dursleys. Harry somehow knew something bad was going to happen to them. But how did Harry know?  
  
***  
  
Harry was forced to stay in the medical ward for the rest of the night, but when morning came, Harry was let free, and made his way (after taking many wrong turns) into the living room. Sirius, Ron, and Hermione were all eating their breakfast. Harry sat down to eat and found that Sirius had told Ron and Hermione all about Godric Gryffindor being Harry's ascendant.  
  
They were both awestruck, but both also claimed not to be surprised.  
  
"Well, it does explain a lot," Hermione secretly said to Ron after breakfast.  
  
"What do you mean?" Ron asked curiously.  
  
"Well, he's been a model Gryffindor student, hasn't he?" Hermione replied, "I know he had some sort of old, magical power in his blood."  
  
After the three of them all finished telling one another stories about their vacation, Harry insisted on showing Ron and Hermione around the house. Not only did he want to take his mind off of yesterday's events, but he had realized that there was a lot more to be discovered about his new house. He wanted to explore it all.  
  
"Don't get lost," Sirius told them as they all hurried out of the living room.  
  
Harry was surprised at how many rooms his house had. Within 5 hours of their exploring, they had all counted about 100 different rooms, and more were still to be found.  
  
"This used to be Godric Gryffindor's old house, y'know," Harry told Ron and Hermione.  
  
"Really?" Ron gasped.  
  
"Yeah," Harry continued, "Sirius told me."  
  
As he said this, Harry finally remembered something important he wanted to show Ron and Hermione; Godric Gryffindor's painting.  
  
"Do you guys want to meet him?" Harry asked slyly.  
  
"Meet him?" Hermione laughed.  
  
"Harry, he died centuries ago," Ron said.  
  
"I know," Harry said cooly, "But there's a painting of him near my room. I was talking to him the night before you two came over."  
  
Hermione and Ron were both looking at Harry with their jaws dropped in awe.  
  
"He's really nice, too," Harry added.  
  
The three of them didn't wait any longer to get to the picture. Harry leading the way, they all hurried to see Godric Gryffindor.  
  
"Almost there," Harry told them as they ran up the Grand Staircase.  
  
They finally came to the painting and stopped. Godric was watching them all and he laughed a bit.  
  
"Who's this?" he asked Harry.  
  
"These are my best friends," Harry smiled, "this is Hermione."  
  
"Nice to meet you," Godric said.  
  
Hermione tried to talk, but simply whimpered a word that sounded like, "hi."  
  
"And this is Ron," Harry said, pointing to Ron.  
  
"Hello, Ron," Godric said.  
  
"Cool," Ron sighed as he shook his head in disbelief.  
  
"So," Godric continued after a chuckle at Ron and Hermione's amazement, "are you two in my house at Hogwarts as well?"  
  
"Yeah," Ron said, still awestruck.  
  
"Yes I am," Hermione said proudly, "I'm the new Gryffindor prefect this year." "Wondeful!" Godric smiled.  
  
Harry looked at Hermione. "You are?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah," Hermione replied, smiling brightly, "Ron must have forgotten to mention it in the letter he sent to you before we came."  
  
Ron rolled his eyes, and Harry could tell that Ron had purposely left it out of the letter.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione talked with Godric for what seemed like hours. Harry informed Godric about the Dursleys, and who had killed them.  
  
"Who's Voldemort?" Godric asked curiously.  
  
"Er, Salazar Slytherin's heir," Harry replied.  
  
"His kin still exists, do they?" Godric said bitterly.  
  
Harry then told Godric all about Voldemort and his Death Eaters, and how his parents had been killed by him. He also explained about how he got his scar and why he was so famous.  
  
Eventually, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had to leave Godric to go eat dinner, but they promised they would see him again, and they stuck true to their word. Thy went to visit him the next day, and everyday after that for the next few weeks (Ron and Hermione's parents had both agreed to let them stay until the new school year started).  
  
About two weeks before school started, Harry, Ron and Hermione all got their letters from Hogwarts.  
  
"Hey!" Ron exclaimed as he looked at his letter, "I've just remembered, fifth-years don't need permission forms for Hogsmeade!"  
  
"Great," Harry sighed with a chuckle, "the first year that I have a legal guardian who's willing to sign the form, and I don't even need one."  
  
Harry looked at his letter and read it over. It said:  
  
--------  
  
Dear Mr. Potter,  
  
We are pleased to inform you that you have been granted a fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please note that fifth-years no longer require permission to enter Hogsmeade other than that of a staff member. You're supplies list has been enclosed.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Professor M. McGonagall  
  
Headmistress  
  
-------------------  
  
Harry put away his letter and took out his supplies list. He looked over it until one class list in particular caught his eye:  
  
-------------------  
  
History of Dark Magic- Cecil Pagery  
  
Basic Hexes and Curses- Serena Blosworth  
  
The Study of Simple Dark Magic- Margery Marsh  
  
The Dark Arts: Chapter 1- William Shawville  
  
-------------------  
  
Hermione must have been reading this list also, because she gasped as she looked at her letter (with her shiny new prefect badge tightly clutched in her hand).  
  
"Oh my goodness," she exclaimed, "I'm taking the Dark Arts? I never signed up for that! I didn't even know that Hogwarts teaches that stuff!"  
  
"I'm signed up for it, too," Harry said as he showed Hermione his class- list.  
  
"Me too!" Ron added, seeming curious.  
  
"Why on Earth are they teaching us Dark Magic?" Hermione suspiciously thought aloud. "And why the hell do we need dress robes again?" Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Dress robes?" Harry repeated and he looked at his supplies list again. It was at the top of his clothing supplies list.  
  
"Ooooh," said Hermione eagerly, "Maybe we're having another Ball this year!"  
  
"Ooooh," Ron mimicked sarcastically, "Because the last one was just so much fun."  
  
"Oh shut up," Hermione retorted, turning slightly pink.  
  
"Well," Harry interrupted, changing the subject, "I could probably get Sirius to bring us to Diagon Alley."  
  
"You mean Knockturn Alley?" Ron said uneasily.  
  
"What do you mean by that, Ron?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Look at the bottom of the supplies list," Ron replied, "It says, 'students please note that History of Dark Magic, Basic Hexes and Curses, The Study of Simple Dark Magic, and The Dark Arts: Chapter 1 will all be found in Grachus's Study of Knockturn Alley.' Now THAT is weird."A moment of uneasy silence followed Ron's words.  
  
"Just make sure that Sirius comes with us, then, okay Harry?" Hermione added with a slight quiver in her voice.  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
-Summer :)  
  
PS- someone asked when I started writing this story...I started in December of 2001. 


	4. Grachus's Study

The True Heir of Slytherin  
  
Chapter 4: "Grachus's Study"  
__________________________________________________  
  
Needless to say, Sirius was rather concerned about the new Dark Arts class once Harry had told him. Even more so, he didn't like the idea of taking Harry, Ron, and Hermione into Knockturn Alley.  
  
"I'll take the three of you, so long as you promise to stick close to me. Knockturn Alley is no place for students to be, especially in these days."  
  
Harry quite agreed.  
  
*****  
  
When the day came for them to buy their school supplies, Sirius took Harry aside for a moment.  
  
"Are you sure you want to go?" Sirius asked, "because if you don't, I could have someone else pick up everybody's things."  
  
"Of course I want to go," Harry replied, "Why wouldn't I?"  
  
"Well," Sirius sighed, "it's just that...with the recent events...Harry--- Voldemort is still looking for you. He may very well have spies all throughout Diagon and Knockturn Alley, waiting for you to show up."  
  
"But they wouldn't do anything with all those other wizards around, would they?"  
  
"Well, no," Sirius admitted, "but in Knockturn Alley, well, there are lots of wizards that go there who are ... interested in the Dark Arts. It's Them that I'm worried about."  
  
"We'll be fine," Harry replied, "I'm sure there will be some other students getting their supplies from Grachus's Study."  
  
"Very well," Sirius said, "Go get ready, then."  
  
About an hour later, Sirius, Hermione, Ron, and Harry left for Diagon Alley using Sirius's fork portkey.  
  
When they arrived in Diagon Alley, there weren't as many people around as Harry had remembered there to be.  
  
"Where is everybody?" Harry asked aloud."At their homes, most likely," Ron replied, "everyone's afraid to go anywhere because of You-Know-Who."  
  
Harry didn't blame them, either. However, the lacking crowd of people made Harry a lot more nervous. This was the first time over the entire summer that he'd gone somewhere other than the Dursleys or Sirius's.  
  
"Well," Sirius started, "Where do you three want to go first?"  
  
"Umm, how about Gringotts?" Harry asked, "I need to get some money before I can buy anything."  
  
"Me too," Hermione said.  
  
"Me three," Ron added.  
  
"Oh don't worry, I'll pay for the lot of you," Sirius replied.  
  
Hermione, Harry and Ron all looked at each other in shock.  
  
"Sirius," Hermione said uneasily, "you don't have to do that-"  
  
"Yeah," Ron added, his ears going pink, "it's nice enough of you to have let us stayed at your house for so long. You don't have to-"  
  
"Don't worry, guys," Sirius persisted, "I promised the Ministry that they'd pay for putting me in Azkaban for 13 years, and they're going to, even if that means simply paying for your school supplies. Remember, this is really their money, not mine."  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione didn't know what else to say, but they had no choice. Sirius was going to buy their school supplies whether they liked it or not.  
  
*****  
  
After buying almost all of their new school supplies, they only had one place left to go: Grachus's Study in Knockturn Alley.  
  
"Stay close together," Sirius told the three as they entered Knockturn Alley.  
  
Knockturn Alley, also, didn't have too many people wandering around, save the occasional hag or warlock.  
  
They made their way down the main street, which was full of weird looking and scary things, half of which Harry didn't even know the use of.  
  
They finally came to the end of the street where Grachus's Study stood. It was a tall and brooding place, and it seemed as though when you looked upon it, and eery, distant chanting could be heard, beckoning you to come in."There's an unfriendly face," Ron said bitterly as he pointed to the left side of the store.  
  
"Ugh, what is he doing here?" Hermione snapped.  
  
Harry looked over towards where they were pointing, and sure enough, there was Harry's least favourite teacher, Snape.  
  
As Harry looked at him, he realized that Snape was a lot paler and thinner than usual.  
  
"Is he sick or something?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Hopefully," Ron muttered.  
  
"C'mon guys," Sirius said, and they made their way into the shop.  
  
The store looked like an old, Renaissance-styled library, with a lot of post-Gothic artifacts, arches, and candles.  
  
"Well, this isn't so bad," Hermione said, smiling as she looked at all of the books.  
  
Ron rolled his eyes at her. As he did, his eyes stopped at the corner of the store, and he looked at a girl who was sitting on a chair slightly behind him, reading.  
  
"Woah," he said.  
  
"What?" Harry asked as Hermione and Sirius left to look around the store.  
  
"Look at her," Ron whispered, pointing at the girl.  
  
Harry looked at the girl. She was about 15, very pretty, and somewhat mysterious. She was reading a thick book that looked very old. Her long black hair was let down and slightly covered her deep purple dress, covered by a long, black cloak. As she read the book, she seemed to be taking notes.  
  
"What about her?" Harry asked.  
  
"What about her?!" Ron repeated, "Look at her, she's ... gorgeous."  
  
Harry sighed and looked around for Sirius.  
  
"I wonder if she's a Veela," Ron whispered as Harry left.  
  
Finally, Harry spotted Sirius, who was at the counter, paying for all of their books to an old, gangly looking man.  
  
At that moment, a voice from behind Harry caught his attention.  
  
"Mr. Potter," it said coldly.  
  
Harry turned around to find Lucius Malfoy looking down upon him.  
  
Harry clenched his fists as anger flooded through his body.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Harry growled.  
  
"Temper, temper," Lucius replied, "I'm simply shopping, like yourself."As he said this, Snape suddenly appeared beside Lucius.  
  
"Come now, Lucius," Snape replied, "Let the boy be."  
  
"Or what?!" Lucius hissed, "The little brat deserves what's coming to him." Lucius grabbed for his wand.  
  
"And what might that be?" a gentle, yet powerful voice said.  
  
Harry turned around to see the girl who had been reading five minutes ago, now holding her wand directly at Lucius Malfoy.  
  
"L-Lady Siren," Lucius gulped, "How - How nice to see you again."  
  
"I think you should leave, Lucius," the girl said coldly.  
  
Lucius didn't hesitate, and immediately left the store.  
  
"That wasn't necessary," Snape said to the girl.  
  
"Severus, he deserved it," the girl replied darkly, "besides, he was asking for trouble." She looked at Harry.  
  
"I would not have let anything bad happen, Siren," Snape added.  
  
"I know," the girl replied. She looked once more at Harry. "Are you from Hogwarts?" she asked.  
  
Harry could feel himself going red in the face as she stared at him. She was even prettier up close, he noticed, and he felt almost unworthy of her company. "Yeah," Harry answered, a little confused, "Sorry, but, er, who are you?"  
  
"My name is Siren," she answered, "And you?" She held out her hand to Harry.  
  
"Harry," he said, shaking her hand, "Harry Potter."  
  
Siren looked somewhat shocked (as most wizards and witches did when Harry introduced himself).  
  
Siren, however, looked almost afraid of Harry.  
  
"Oh," she stammered, and she quickly let go of Harry's hand.  
  
"Um," she added quickly, looking away, "I have to go." And with that, she left the store, her black cloak and hair flowing in the wind behind her.  
  
Snape looked at Harry, then turned on his heal to follow Siren.  
  
Ron and Hermione appeared at Harry's sides.  
  
"What was that all about?" Ron asked.  
  
*****  
  
Harry told Ron, Hermione, and Sirius all that had happened at Grachus's Study, and none of them seemed to understand it."Harry," Sirius said afterwards, "You should have gotten me when Lucius Malfoy showed up. I would have loved speaking with a real, live Death Eater."  
  
But Harry knew that if Sirius had attempted to hurt Lucius, that would have put Sirius back in Azkaban, for Lucius had not yet been convicted to be a Death Eater, and attacking him would have been a punishable offence.  
  
Over the next few days, Harry, Ron, and Hermione got ready for school.  
  
Hermione was especially happy when she received a letter from Viktor Krum, saying that he would be attending Hogwarts for his final year, rather than Durmstrang. This didn't please Ron too much, though.  
  
The day finally came for the three of them to set off for Hogwarts.  
  
"I've arranged for some ministry members to drive you three to London," Sirius told them all at breakfast, "I believe they will also have an auror with them. They should be arriving in about an hour, so I hope you all are ready."  
  
"You mean, you're not coming with us?" Ron asked as he took a bite out of his scrambled eggs.  
  
"I'm afraid I can't," Sirius replied, opening a copy of the Daily Prophet, "The Minister of Magic wants me to meet with him this morning."  
  
Harry finished eating his sausages and looked up at Sirius. "What for?" he asked.  
  
Sirius smiled proudly at this, and put down the paper.  
  
"Well," he answered, "Apparently the Ministry members are holding an important meeting. Don't tell anyone yet, but they want to make me an auror or something of the sort."  
  
"An auror?" Ron exclaimed, "That's awesome!"  
  
"Wow!" Hermione added, "You know, Viktor's Uncle AND Grandfather used to be aurors--really good ones, too."  
  
"Well good for him," Ron said, annoyed.  
  
Sirius chuckled a bit and turned his eyes onto Harry.  
  
"What do you think, Harry?" he asked excitedly.  
  
"Um," Harry stammered, "that's great."  
  
Harry quickly put his breakfast dish onto the coffee table and stood up.  
  
"You know what," he said, "I'm just gonna go get my things ready."  
  
"I'll join ya once I'm done," Ron said with a full mouth of toast."Me too," Hermione added.  
  
Harry quickly left the room.  
  
"That's odd," Ron said as Harry walked out, "all of his stuff os already down here."  
Harry couldn't believe what he had just heard. Sirius was going to become an auror? How could he?  
  
Harry now felt very upset and alone. Being an auror is a dangerous job, and lots of them get killed. What if Sirius was to be killed? Then Harry would have nobody left. Didn't Sirius know that? Did he even care?  
  
All of these thoughts and questions flooded Harry's mind as he walked up the Grand Staircase. Harry was jerked back to reality, however, when he heard his name being called.  
  
"Harry!"  
  
He turned around. Sirius was coming up the stairs.  
  
"Hey," Sirius said as he reached the top. "Harry," he continued, "you know, your stuff is downstairs already."  
  
"Oh," Harry answered. He already knew this, of course, and was searching his mind for an excuse for leaving the living room.  
  
"Um," Harry finally added, "Hedwig-she's still outside. She usually goes to my bedroom window. I'm just going to get her."  
  
"Oh," Sirius replied, "OK."  
  
Sirius looked at Harry for a bit, rather concerned.  
  
"Harry, are you alright?" Sirius asked, "I mean, is there something bothering you?"  
  
Harry took a deep breath. Of course there was something bothering him. Things had been bothering him ever since Voldemort rose again. There was so many bad things that Harry wanted to say to Sirius at that moment. Harry's anger gave him a new sense of power, and the feeling of authority. However, he buried those feelings deep down, and refused to let them out.  
  
He faked a smile and answered, "Yeah, I'm fine." To Harry's relief, Sirius smiled as well.  
  
"Good," Sirius said as he gave Harry a pat on the back, "good."  
  
"Well, I'm gonna go - get Hedwig," Harry said.  
  
"Alright," and Sirius went back down the stairs and to the living room.Harry made his way into his bedroom, where, sure enough, Hedwig was waiting outside the window.  
  
Harry opened the window and Hedwig soared in.  
  
"C'mon," Harry told her as he held out his arm, "We're leaving soon."  
  
Hedwig flew onto Harry's forearm, and together they left the room.  
  
Harry made his way down the hallway, saying good-bye to the painting of Godric, and to all of the other paintings which wished him farewell.  
  
*****  
  
The cars sent by the Ministry finally showed up to take Ron, Harry, and Hermione to King's Cross, where they would board the Hogwarts Express at Platform 9 3/4 at 11:30 am.  
  
"Goodbye!" Sirius said to them all as they left.  
  
"Bye!" Ron said.  
  
"Bye, Sirius," added Hermione, giving him a hug, "Thanks for everything! And good luck at the Ministry!"  
  
"Thanks," Sirius replied kindly, "Have a safe ride."  
  
Sirius at last turned to Harry. "Well, I guess this is it," Sirius said, putting his hands on Harry's shoulders.  
  
"I guess so," Harry replied.  
  
"Excited?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Yeah," Harry smiled.  
  
"Well," Sirius continued, giving Harry a quick hug, "I expect I'll see you soon - Professor Dumbledore says I'm welcome to visit the school at anytime."  
  
"Cool," said Harry, "Come soon, then."  
  
"I will," Sirius smiled.  
  
"Bye," Harry sighed.  
  
"Goodbye," Sirius replied.  
  
And with that, Harry, Ron and Hermione all walked outside.  
  
The Ministry workers had already packed their things into the trunk, and were now holding the doors open for them.  
  
"Ready?" one of the men asked.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione all looked at one another. Harry then looked back at Godric's Castle, with an ill foreboding that he wouldn't lay eyes upon it ever again. He shook his head of those ridiculous thoughts and sighed."Yeah," he answered, "I'm ready."  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
Whew, that took me about half an hour to type out. lol.  
  
-Summer :) 


	5. The Unusual Train Ride

"The True Heir of Slytherin"  
  
Chapter 5: "The Unusual Train Ride"  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
As Harry, Ron, and Hermione got into the car, Harry immediately realized that it's interior was magically enlarged, just like the Weasley's old car.  
  
Harry also noticed the man who was sitting next to Ron. He looked about Sirius's age, and he had a few noticeable scars on his face. Harry suspected this to be an auror.  
  
The man, however, took no notice of Harry, Ron, or Hermione. Instead, he kept looking out the window.  
  
Throughout the entire car ride, the man never spoke a word, nor introduced himself.  
  
As they finally arrived at King's Cross, the man opened the door to let Harry, Ron, and Hermione out.  
  
As the three of them got out of the car, the man finally spoke.  
  
"I want you three to stay close to me," he said in a somewhat demanding voice, "and DON'T stray off."  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged nervous glances, and they followed the man towards Platform 9 3/4.  
  
"I'll go first," Harry said once they arrived at the wall between platforms 9 and 10.  
  
"Oh no you don't," said the man, "You're going last with me."  
  
"Why?" Harry exclaimed, rather rudely.  
  
"Because," the man replied coldly, "I'm here to protect you against Dark Lords, and if one of them happens to be waiting on the other side of that wall, I will not be held responsible for letting you be kidnaped, or killed."  
  
The man seemed to now be towering over Harry in an overwhelming dominance. Harry was suddenly reminded of Voldemort for some odd reason. Perhaps it was the man's attitude towards him. Or perhaps it was the evil look of the man's face, hovering over him. Either way, he knew he would be glad to be rid of this man.  
  
"So then," Ron said aloud, "You are an auror."  
  
"Of course I am," the man snapped.  
  
"You two," he said, pointing at Hermione and Ron, "You two go first."  
  
Hermione shrugged her shoulders and gave Harry a helpless look. Her and Ron then walked calmly through the wall between platforms 9 and 10.  
  
"Alright," said the man, "Our turn. Let's go."  
  
The man grabbed Harry by his left arm, since Harry's right arm pulled along his trolley.  
  
And so Harry was literally pulled through the wall by this man. As they appeared on the other side of the wall, the man continued to pull Harry away and on to the train.  
  
Ron and Hermione, who were waiting on the other side of the wall, ran to catch up with Harry and the man who pulled him.  
  
The man eventually pulled Harry onto the train, and into an empty compartment.  
  
"You'll be safe here," the man said.  
  
"Gee, are you sure?" Ron asked with sarcastic concern.  
  
The man, though, didn't notice Ron's sarcasm and replied, "Of course I'm sure. This is where one of the Hogwarts Teachers will be staying."  
  
But before Harry could ask which teacher, the man left.  
  
Harry put all of his things away and slouched down onto a seat. "I wonder which teacher is staying here," Harry sighed.  
  
"Snape," Ron muttered in pure annoyance.  
  
"What?" Harry groaned as he sat up a bit.  
  
"We saw him on the train while you were getting pulled by that auror," Hermione answered.  
  
"Oh," Harry replied, "Great. My favourite teacher in the whole wide world."  
  
Hermione laughed a bit.  
  
"Well, look on the bright side," Ron added, "He can't take any points away from Gryffindor, I mean, the term hasn't even started yet."  
  
"But he'll be sure to note your current attitudes toward him once he IS able to take away your pathetic house points," said a cold voice from behind Ron.  
  
There stood Snape, wicked as ever.Ron jumped in surprise and quickly sat down next to Harry.  
  
This left only two seats left. Snape sat down opposite to Harry and next to the window, and Hermione was the forced to sit next to Snape, as it was the only seat left. She almost fell off the edge of it, trying to stay as away as possible from the mean teacher.  
  
"Since when do teachers go on the Hogwarts Express?" Harry asked bitterly.  
  
"Quit your whining, Potter, I didn't ask to come here." Snape replied.  
  
"Then why are you here?" Harry asked without taking his eyes off of Snape.  
  
Snape sighed and answered in barely more than a whisper, "To ensure that someone arrives safely."  
  
Harry couldn't believe his ears. Snape was there to ensure his safety? Or was he talking about someone else?  
  
Snape must have noticed the look of shock on Harry face because he quickly added, "And it's not you. So don't look so surprised."  
  
Hermione, who was still edging as far away from Snape as possible, suddenly looked at him, her eyebrows raised in curiosity.  
  
"Who, then?" she asked.  
  
Snape rolled his eyes and without looking at her replied, "That's not your business, so be quiet."  
  
Hermione gave Snape an evil look, then turned her eyes to Ron.  
  
"So," she said, "When do you want to start looking for Ginny and the twins?"  
  
"Right now," Ron answered, looking at Snape, "And quickly."  
  
The three of them all stood up to leave, but as they did, Snape finally looked at them.  
  
"Actually," he said in a toneless voice, "I'd like to have a word with you, Potter."  
  
Harry scoffed. "About what?"  
  
Snape didn't reply, but simply glared persistently at Harry. Then, as if Harry could read Snape's mind, he understood. Snape wanted to talk about Voldemort.  
  
Harry somewhat nodded as he realized this, then he turned to Ron and Hermione.  
  
"Um, I'll catch up with you guys in a bit," he said, "Is that ok?"  
  
Ron, who was completely bewildered at this point, just simply replied, "Sure, it's your funeral."  
  
"Yeah, it's ok," Hermione said quietly. She seemed to know what was going on.  
  
Hermione and Ron both left the compartment, and Harry sat back down, opposite to Snape.  
  
"Potter, I though we'd discuss the recent passing of your relatives," Snape said right away.  
  
"I thought as much," Harry replied quietly.  
  
Snape looked at Harry in a manner which showed neither hate nor pity. In fact, it showed no emotion at all. Neither did his voice.  
  
"Potter," he continued, "You do know that Voldemort wasn't the only one behind it, don't you?"  
  
"Yeah," Harry replied, looking out the window, "Do you know who it was?"  
  
"How should I know?" Snape asked, looking at Harry suspiciously.  
  
"Sir, I know you're spying on Voldemort," he said, looking back at Snape.  
  
"And exactly how do you know this, Potter?" Snape spat coldly.  
  
"Sirius told me," Harry replied.  
  
Snape flinched at the mention of Sirius's name. Hate seemed to flood his eyes, and his lip began to curl.  
  
"Of course he did," Snape muttered, as though talking to himself. He then looked darkly at Harry and added, "But you listen to me, Potter, if that information passes through your lips once more to anyone, you will be in severe trouble, understand?"  
  
"Fine," Harry snapped back, "You needn't bite my head off-"  
  
"Potter," Snape interrupted, angrily this time, "if that information gets out, Voldemort will hear about it, and if he finds out, I'm as good as dead, and the Ministry will have no longer have any inside information. It is dire that my purposes remain a secret. Sirius was a fool to tell you, but since he has, I expect you to be especially quiet about it, or else."  
  
Just as Snape finished threatening Harry, the compartment door on Harry's side opened.  
  
"There you are," a girl said as she walked in.  
  
"Siren," Snape said as he stood up, "You're late."  
  
"I know," Siren replied, "But at least I caught the train. I wasn't even sure if I would."  
  
As she said this, the train began to move.  
  
"Please, have a seat," Snape said.  
  
Siren sat down, and she finally noticed Harry.  
  
"Harry," se said, stunned, "Nice meeting you again."Harry knew this was a lie, because Siren didn't seem happy at all to see him.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Harry asked her, "are you going got Hogwarts, too?"  
  
"Um, yeah," Siren said.  
  
Harry desperately wanted to leave. He looked at Snape.  
  
"Can I go now?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, go," Snape said, annoyed.  
  
Harry quickly stood up. He walked towards the compartment door. As he reached his hand out to open it, the door slid open quickly. Harry looked at the doorway in surprise, only to see Draco Malfoy standing there, along with Crabbe and Goyle. Harry noticed right away that Draco looked different. He was a good few inches taller, and he looked rather buffed up - rather intimidating, if Harry didn't know him better.  
  
'You've got to be kidding,' Harry thought, 'First Snape, now this?'  
  
"Oh look, it's Princess Potter," Malfoy said to Crabbe and Goyle.  
  
Harry simply rolled his eyes.  
  
"Would you mind getting out of the way?" Harry said coldly.  
  
Crabbe and Goyle began to crack their knuckles in a threatening way.  
  
"Come again, Potter?" Malfoy laughed, "Am I in your way?"  
  
"Yes," Harry replied cooly, "So move - unless, of course, your ego is too big to fit through the doorway."  
  
Malfoy turned red with anger and clenched his fists.  
  
"I bet you think you're funny, don't you, Potter?" Malfoy scoffed, "but I'll be the one laughing once the Dark Lord puts you in your place-"  
  
"Malfoy!" Siren yelled from behind Harry, "How dare you say such a thing!"  
  
Malfoy's eyes widened at the sight of Siren. He looked her up and down, and took a deep breath.  
  
"Lady Siren," he stammered, quite like his father did in Siren's presence, "W-what brings you here?"  
  
Harry was surprised to see even Crabbe and Goyle cowering behind Malfoy.  
  
"I will be attending Hogwarts this year, Draco," Siren said coldly, "and I will be teaching there as well."  
  
Malfoy gulped.  
  
"Teaching?" he choked, "teaching what?"  
  
Siren moved closer to Malfoy until she was right beside Harry.  
  
Snape simply stood in the background, overlooking the five of them.  
  
Siren looked at Malfoy, and Harry could see nothing but pure hate and disgust in her eyes. Oddly enough, Harry was reminded of the way Voldemort had looked at him when he rose again. His snake-like eyes piercing his hearts and mind, corrupting them, and making them cold.  
  
As Harry looked at Siren's eyes, he noticed a great resemblance to those of Voldemort's when he was about Harry's age, when he was still known as Tom Riddle.  
  
"I will be teaching a new class," Siren replied cooly, "only a select few will participate in it."  
  
Harry finally understood. The only new class that Harry could think of was the Dark Arts. Siren was going to be the Dark Arts teacher. But she didn't look very old. Only about Harry's age. And what did she mean when she said she'd be attending Hogwarts as well as teaching there? Was she going to be a teacher and a student? Was that even allowed?  
  
"You mean, the Dark Arts?" Malfoy said, a bit happier.  
  
"Don't tell me you're in the class?" Siren sighed in annoyance.  
  
"I am," Malfoy said proudly, looking at Harry, "I'll bet you're not, Potter."  
  
"I am actually," Harry snapped, "and so is Ron and Hermione."  
  
"This will be a fun year for you, Draco," Siren said, smiling somewhat evilly. Harry could have sworn that for a moment Siren's eyes turned red - again, just like Voldemort's did.  
  
Malfoy didn't seem happy at all now. He simply walked past Harry, Siren, and Snape without a word, quickly followed by Crabbe and Goyle, who were desperately trying not to make eye-contact with Siren.  
  
Harry quickly took this opportunity to leave the compartment to find Ron and Hermione. As he left, though, he could have sworn that he heard a soft, beautiful voice, singing in some unknown language, telling Harry to turn back.  
  
Harry, though, simply shook his head of all that nonsense and continued to look for Ron and Hermione.  
  
*****  
  
Harry eventually found Ron and Hermione sitting in a compartment with Fred, George, and Ginny.Harry told them all about what Snape had said (except the fact that Snape was a spy. He just figured that he'd tell Ron and Hermione about it later). He then told them about Siren being the new Dark Arts teacher.  
  
"Dark Arts?" Fred whined, "Why didn't they pick me?"  
  
"Yeah," George agreed, "We never get any of the good classes."  
  
As the five of them talked some more about the new class, Ginny seemed relieved.  
  
"I'm glad I wasn't picked," she said, "I've had enough Dark Arts to last me the rest of my life."  
  
"What are you talking about?!" Ron laughed, "you've never practiced any Dark Arts!"  
  
"No," Ginny replied defensively, going slightly red, "I was talking about - you know - Tom Riddle."  
  
Everyone fell somewhat silent after this. As the silence grew, Harry began to think about the times when he fought and talked to Tom Riddle.  
  
Harry began to remember going into Tom's memory, and seeing Hogwarts as it had been, about 50 years prior to that day.  
  
He remembered Tom's face, and how he had black hair and deep-set eyes. The more he remembered this, the more he began to see the resemblance between Tom and Siren. They both has mature, pale faces, black hair, and serious eyes.  
  
As Harry sunk deeper into his thoughts, he was snapped back to reality when he heard Hermione talking excitedly.  
  
"Viktor!" she said as she stood up.  
  
Viktor Krum had just walked into their compartment with another boy whom Harry had never seen before.  
  
"Hermo-ninny!" Krum said, smiling. He walked towards her and gave her a hug.  
  
"I vos vorried that you veren't on the train," he added.  
  
"I thought you weren't on the train," Hermione replied.  
  
Hermione looked over Krum's shoulder at the boy who stood behind him.  
  
He wore all black, and he had brown hair, and dark eyes.  
  
"Ah," Krum said, noticing her curiosity, "This is Hunter Nott. He vas my friend at Durmstrang. He is going to Hogwarts this year as vell."  
  
Hunter simply nodded his head as a greeting and mumbled something that sounded like, "Hey."  
  
"Are you from Bulgaria, too?" Hermione asked him.  
  
Hunter shook his head no. Krum added, "He is from England, like you. But he can speak Bulgarian very vell. It is easier for me to talk vith him in Bulgarian."  
  
Krum then turned back to Hunter and said something to him (in Bulgarian), followed by everyone else's names.  
  
As usually was done during introductions involving Harry, Hunter looked stunned when he heard Harry's name, and, as usual, he stared at Harry's scar.  
  
"So," Hermione said cheerfully, "what classes are you taking, Viktor?"  
  
Krum pulled out a sheet which had all of his classes on it, and read it aloud.  
  
"Arithmomancy, Charms, History, Divination, Potions, and Dark Arts."  
  
"Oh good!" Hermione smiled, "we're going to be in Dark Arts together."  
  
"Good," Krum replied in his thick accent, "But I thought that Hogwarts didn't teach the Dark Arts. Vhy are they starting it now?"  
  
"I don't know," Hermione answered glumly.  
  
Hermione and Viktor talked a bit more until the doors to their compartment opened, and in walked Siren.  
  
Ron went slightly pink, and Fred and George (who had never seen her before) simply stared at her, open-jawed.  
  
As Siren entered, she saw Hunter and immediately stopped.  
  
The two of them stared a each other for a bit before either of them spoke a word.  
  
"Hunter," Siren finally said, somewhat shocked, "What are you doing here?"  
  
"I was just going to ask you the same question," Hunter replied gently.  
  
"I'm going to Hogwarts," Siren replied softly, "My mother didn't want me under Karkaroff's care anymore because of ... well, you know."  
  
"I understand," Hunter said as he walked closer to her. He took her hands into his and looked deeply at her. "You promised you would come to visit me over the summer," he said quietly, "but you never did."  
  
"I know," Siren said, putting her head down. "I'm sorry, but, a lot has happened this summer, with my grandfather and all."  
  
"That's no excuse," Hunter said dominantly, but quietly, "A promise is a promise, Siren."  
  
As he said this, he seemed to hold her hand tighter, and she flinched a bit as if it was hurting her.  
  
"I'm sorry, Hunter," she replied softly, keeping her head down, "but we're together now. Everything is normal again."Hunter than let go of her hand slightly and hugged her. "I missed you," he said.  
  
"I missed you, too," Siren whispered.  
  
As they embraced, Siren finally took notice of Krum and everyone else who was staring at her.  
  
"Oh, hello Viktor," she said as she left Hunter's arms and walked closer to Krum.  
  
"There are a lot more transver students than I thought there vos going to be," Krum said.  
  
"Well," Siren replied, "Dumbledore persuaded me to come here instead of Durmstrang,"  
  
"I see," Krum replied, "So, it's been a while since last I saw you." He gave Siren a hug, as though they were old friends reunited after hard times.  
  
Hunter didn't seem happy about that, but he remained silent and simply put his arm around Siren and Viktor pulled away.  
  
"How are you, Viktor?" she asked him in a melancholy tone.  
  
"Good," he replied, "I vos playing sport all summer. Vot about you? Vot did you do this summer?"  
  
Siren seemed a little nervous about answering the question, but simply replied, "Nothing at all. Stayed at my mom's, y'know, but nothing major."  
  
"Haff you heard from Karkaroff at all?" Krum asked quietly.  
  
"No," Siren sighed, "but I think he might be back with Voldemort, unfortunately."  
  
"Don't say that name, please," Krum said, taking a deep breath.  
  
"Sorry," Siren whispered.  
  
"How do you know he is vith - that lot?" Krum asked suspiciously.  
  
Siren shrugged her shoulders.  
  
"Just rumours, I guess," she answered politely.  
  
As she answered, sherubbed her left forearm and lifted the sleeve a little. Her eyes widened as she looked at it, though nobody else could see what she was looking at. She pulled her sleeve back down and continued to act as though nothing had happened.  
  
"Are you ok?" Krum asked.  
  
"Yeah," Siren said, "Just, um, I hit my arm on a desk this morning - it's a little sore."  
  
At this, Hunter stepped forward and took hold of Siren's hand.  
  
"We should go now," he said, "we have a lot of catching up to do."  
  
"Yeah," Siren replied, still holding on to her arm. She winced every few seconds at the pain.  
  
Hunter then seemed to pull her away a bit. She silently followed him without hesitation. Her blood red robes seemed to quiver, as though her entire body was trembling.  
  
Hunter opened the sliding door which was opposite to Harry. As Siren began to walk through, the sliding door behind Harry slammed open, and in walked Snape, rather quickly, and rather angrily.  
  
"Siren," he said hastily, taking no notice of those around him, "Siren, come with me, please."  
  
Siren stopped and looked at Snape.  
  
"What's wrong?" she asked, and she let go of Hunter's hand and walked towards Snape.  
  
Hunter looked as though he was going to kill someone. Harry seemed to notice that if Siren wasn't paying attention to Hunter, he would get extremely angry. If indeed they were a couple, Harry assumed that Hunter must have been a very controlling boyfriend.  
  
"Just follow me," Snape said as he turned to leave, urging Siren to go with him, "I'll explain it on the way."  
  
And so, the two of them left. Krum looked absolutely puzzled.  
  
"Vot vos that about?" Krum said, turning around to face Hunter, "Hunter?"  
  
Hunter was gone. He had left the compartment without a word.  
  
___________________________________________________________________________  
  
Hope you liked it :) I'll be uploading the next chapters soon...I takes a while to type them all up lol.  
  
-Summer :) 


	6. Sorting the Transfer Students

"Harry Potter and the True Heir of Slytherin"  
  
Chapter Six: "The Sorting of the Transfer Students"  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
Harry never discovered what happened with Snape, Siren and Hunter during the train ride.  
  
All he knew was that something bad must have happened. For the rest of the ride, Harry didn't tell anyone about his suspicions. He knew, first of all, that there was a death eater by the last name of Nott, which also happened to be Hunter's last name. Hunter sure did act rather rudely, and somewhat frightening, but Harry didn't know for sure if Hunter was related to the Death Eater. Nott wasn't a very uncommon name, was it? Also, Harry noticed that when Siren spoke of her father, she spoke of him in an ashamed  
  
voice, as though she didn't like him. Harry didn't know Siren's last name, so he didn't know if maybe Siren's father was a Death Eater. It would've made sense if he was, too. It would explain how Siren knew the Malfoys, Hunter, and Snape, and why she was ashamed of her father.  
  
Also, was it possible that Siren bore the Dark Mark? Harry saw for himself when Snape  
  
revealed his Dark Mark on his forearm just the year before. Siren grabbed at her left forearm on the train, as though it was in great pain, and Hunter tried to change the subject of the conversation immediately after she did. Also, right after Siren's "Dark Mark" burned her, Snape came and told her to go with him.  
  
Perhaps the two of them were discussing the fact that Voldemort had been calling on them.  
  
Another thing that Harry noticed was that Siren seemed vague about the details about her  
  
summer vacation. Was it during the summer that Siren was branded with the Dark Mark? Was it possible that Siren had been a Death Eater over the summertime? Or maybe she still was one...  
  
Harry didn't want to say anything about what he thought - he figured he would just  
  
secretly tell Ron and Hermione once they were back at Hogwarts, safe in the Gryffindor  
  
common room.  
  
As the sky grew darker, the train moved closer to Hogwarts. Finally, a few hours after Harry's brief meeting with Snape, they arrived. Everyone onboard got up and off of the train.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione got off the train together, along with a cluster of other students. They walked past a group of terrified first years as they got off.  
  
"Firs' years, this way!" called a familiar voice. It was Hagrid, directing the first years towards him, as he always did when the Hogwarts Express arrived at Hogwarts. "Firs' years and transfer students, over 'ere!" Hagrid noticed Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and waved to them. "Alrigh', you three?" he called.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione all waved back at him, and then walked away to find the carriage which would carry the three of them to the front gates. They finally reached the carriage, and Harry and Ron got in, but Hermione waited anxiously outside.  
  
"Are you coming?" Ron asked her.  
  
Hermione was looking over the crowds and looked rather anxious.  
  
"I'm waiting for Viktor," Hermione answered.  
  
Ron rolled his eyes and sighed. "Hermione," he replied, "he's with Hagrid, along with the rest of the transfer students. Now get in so we can leave."  
  
Hermione shoulders fell in disappointment, and she climbed into the carriage and sat  
  
next to Harry. It was very dark out as the carriage began to move. The road they took was very bumpy,  
  
and they could hear the other carriages moving on either side of them. After about five minutes, the carriage stopped right in front of the entrance to Hogwarts.  
  
Harry got out first, followed by Hermione, then Ron. They walked up the stairs which led  
  
to the doors, and Ron gasped. At the entrance there stood two huge trolls. Hermione screamed as Harry took out his wand. The trolls looked at the three of them, very confused. They certainly didn't look very aware of what was really going on around them.  
  
"Don't worry about them," said a somewhat deep, yet familiar voice.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione all turned around and saw who the voice belonged to. It was Lupin. "Professor Lupin!" Hermione exclaimed happily, "What are you doing here?"  
  
Lupin smiled and walked towards them. "You'll find out soon enough," he said mysteriously, "but let's go inside," he continued, "it's a bit chilly out here." "But what about them?" Harry asked, nodding towards the trolls.  
  
"Oh, don't worry," Lupin answered, "They won't hurt you. They're just guarding the main  
  
gates."  
  
"Why?" Ron asked as they walked inside.  
  
"Well, mainly because of Voldemort, I think," he replied gravely. He looked at Harry. "Sorry to hear about the Dursleys, Harry," he added gently. "Are you ok?"  
  
Harry sighed quietly. "Yeah, I'm alright," he responded blankly. "Thanks."  
  
Lupin half-nodded, and they all slowly approached the doors leading into the Great Hall. The Hall was already swarming with students, and they were all talking very loudly.  
  
"I'll see you three later," Lupin said, and he walked out of the Great Hall.  
  
"I wonder where he went?" Hermione asked as the three of them found their seats at the  
  
Gryffindor table.  
  
"Hey guys!" said Neville as he sat down across from them.  
  
"Oh, hey Neville!" Hermione smiled.  
  
"How are ya doing?" asked Ron, stretching out his arms as he sat down.  
  
"OK," Neville replied, and he looked at Harry, "Gee, I'm really sorry to hear about what  
  
happened to your relatives, Harry."  
  
"Thanks, Neville," Harry answered solemnly, trying to smile.  
  
Just then, the doors to the Great Hall opened, and in walked all of the new first years. Behind them walked about fifteen or so older students, in two straight lines. Krum, Hunter, and Siren were among them.  
  
"Are those the Transfer Students?" Neville asked Ron.  
  
"Yeah, I guess so. Since when does Hogwarts have transfer students anyways?" Ron  
  
asked curiously.  
  
"Ever since everyone found out that Karkaroff used to be a Death Eater," Seamus answered, who was sitting next to Neville, "Aren't they all from Durmstrang anyway?"  
  
"I think so," Neville replied, and then he shuddered and added, "They all must know the  
  
Dark Arts, too."  
  
"Yeah," Seamus answered, "I wish that Hogwarts taught the Dark Arts. Must be really  
  
helpful if you're in danger or something."  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione all exchanged looks, but didn't say anything.  
"But I suppose that's what Defense Against the Dark Arts is for," Seamus added with a sigh. "I hope we have a good teacher for it this year."  
All five of them looked up at the staff table to see if they could find an unfamiliar face. Neville pointed out a man wearing a dark navy cloak. He was fairly young, and had brown hair. They all agreed that he must be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.  
"I don't get it," Hermione said, "Why are they transferring here? I mean, Durmstrang has a new Headmaster now, so what's the big deal?"  
  
"I don't know," Seamus replied, "I think it's because their parents want them safe and, well, Dumbledore's the safest guy you can be around, y'know?"  
  
"Has Hogwarts ever had any transfer students before?" Harry asked.  
  
"Rarely," Ron answered, "My mum told me that the only transfer student she ever heard of was from, like, 1850 or something."  
  
The first years all crowded around the center of the stairs leading to the staff table, and the transfer students stood in two neat rows on the right side of the first years. Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore placed the hat atop the stool. The transfer students looked at it oddly, and the first years seemed almost afraid of it. Suddenly, the hat began to move, and a tear in the hat opened like a mouth, as it began to sing:  
  
"Oh, I'm the Sorting Hat, you see,  
  
I'll tell you where you ought to be.  
  
There is no use in lying to me,  
  
Ask anyone, they'll all agree.  
  
So put me on your head, right now,  
  
I'll figure it all out somehow.There's nothing in you I can't see,  
  
There's never been a better hat than me.  
  
Do you belong in Slytherin?  
  
With the cunning, strong and keen?  
  
Perhaps this is the house you'll be in,  
  
And sport quidditch robes of green.  
  
Or perhaps in mighty Gryffindor,  
  
Where it's impossible to be lame.  
  
For their minds are smart and their hearts are sure,  
  
For which they get all the fame.  
  
Or should you be in Hufflepuff?  
  
This could be just the house for you.  
  
Their times are fun and never rough,  
  
And their friendship is always true.  
  
In Ravenclaw, perhaps you'll find,  
  
Proper knowledge you'll need for life.  
  
Their smarts and wisdom ever bind  
  
with their friendships which are free from strife.  
  
So put me on, and you will see,  
  
In whichever house you ought to be.  
  
I'm through with singing now, that's that.  
  
So try me on, I'm the Sorting Hat."  
  
Everyone cheered loudly as the hat ended, especially the first years. Once everyone was settled, the hat began to call out names.  
  
"Anniston, Sherina," it said.  
  
A short, and very nervous girl sat down on the stool as Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore placed the hat on her head. The hat took about 10 seconds before it yelled out, "RAVENCLAW!" Loud cheering was heard from the Ravenclaws as Sherina sat down at their table.  
  
The sorting hat continued to call out names of all the first years, until the last one (Zurich,  
  
Xander) was made a Gryffindor.  
  
Then, the transfer students stepped a bit more forward in an orderly fashion. "TRANSFER STUDENTS!" the hat called out, and all of the transfers stood side-by-side in front of the hat.  
  
As the first 5 were called, they were all made Slytherins.  
  
"That's odd," Ron said to himself.  
  
"What did you expect?" Seamus asked, "I mean, they have learned the Dark Arts and all."  
  
Finally, Viktor Krum was called. Harry could see Hermione crossing her fingers. He  
  
decided to do the same. After being on his head for only 3 seconds, the hat made Krum a Gryffindor. The Gryffindor table was absolutely roaring, especially Hermione. Ron, however, gave one good clap and then stopped and continued to sit quietly.  
  
"Nott, Hunter!" the hat called.  
  
Hunter walked towards the stool and sat down. The hat didn't even touch his head before  
  
it yelled, "SLYTHERIN!" just as it did to Malfoy when he first came to Hogwarts. Hunter somewhat smiled and joined the Slytherin table.  
  
A few more students were called and so far, Krum was the only one who was sorted into a  
  
house other than Slytherin.  
  
"Ridge, Siren!" the hat yelled.  
  
Siren walked forward in a very dignified manner and sat down upon the stool. As Harry watched her, he could hear a distant, a beautiful, voice singing in his head. He suddenly saw visions of great white lights and stars. Then, amidst the light, he saw the silhouette of someone - it was Siren, and she was the one who was singing. Before Harry could move any closer to the silhouette, his thoughts were interrupted.  
  
"SLYTHERIN!" the hat yelled.  
  
Siren didn't seem surprised at all, and sat down at the Slytherin table as if she was royalty.  
  
"That was weird," Ron said, dazed.  
  
"What was?" Harry asked, finally coming to his senses. He was hoping that Ron also saw  
  
the vision, not just him. "What do you mean? Didn't you see the Sorting Hat laugh?" Ron whispered.  
  
"Huh?" Harry asked, confused.  
  
"The hat!" Hermione said quietly, "It laughed before it sorted Siren."  
"Weren't you paying attention?" asked Seamus.  
  
"No," Harry answered truthfully, "not really."  
  
The last transfer student to put the hat on was sorted into Ravenclaw. Krum, who was now sitting on the other side of Hermione, looked rather sad. "Vell," he said, "I guess I'm the only transver student in Gryniffdorr."  
  
"No, it's Gryff-in-dor," Hermione corrected.  
  
"Votever, you get the point," Krum sighed.  
  
Ron looked at Harry and whispered to him, "Geez, he can't even pronounce the name of  
  
his house OR his girlfriend. What an idiot."  
  
Harry didn't reply because he, honestly, liked Krum. And Harry didn't bother to remind  
  
Ron that he once idolized Krum only last year. Harry was just trying to figure out what the  
  
vision was all about. It was then that Harry remembered that he didn't catch Siren's last name.  
  
"Hey," Harry said aloud to the Gryffindors sitting around him, "Did anyone catch Siren's  
  
last name?"  
  
Everyone shook their heads no, some because they didn't know who he was talking about,  
  
and others because they weren't paying close attention to everyone's last names.  
  
"Her last name is Ridge," Krum answered. "Vhy?"  
"Oh," Harry answered, "Just curious." Ridge. Why did that name sound so familiar to Harry? He couldn't put his finger on it.  
  
"Viktor, was it just me," Hermione added, "or was Hunter sort of, er, mean towards  
  
Siren?"  
  
"Vot?" Krum asked, "Veely? I did not notice it."  
  
"He is," Ron said, "and the weird thing is that she took it. I mean, Harry, when we saw  
  
her in Knockturn Alley, she looked like she was ready to kill Lucius Malfoy, remember?"  
  
"Yeah," Harry replied, "She seemed pretty powerful. I wonder why he treats her like  
  
that? And, on the train, when I was with Snape, Draco came, and she looked like she  
  
wanted to kill him, too."  
  
"Who wouldn't?" Hermione muttered.  
  
"Wow," Ron replied, "I didn't know she was there with you."  
  
"She was there to talk to Snape," Harry replied, looking around at the new Gryffindors sitting at the far end of the table, closest to the staff table.  
  
"Speaking of Snape," Hermione added curiously, "They seem to know each other well. But how do  
  
they know each other, I wonder?"  
  
"I dunno," Ron answered, "Probably because they're both evil. She's a real Slytherin, I  
  
tell you. I can see it in her eyes."  
  
Slytherin ... Ridge... Harry thought to himself, and then it finally came to him. He  
  
remembered; Ridge was the name that the heirs of Slytherin switched to! Sirius had told  
  
him so the night that Harry found out he was the heir of Gryffindor.  
  
Harry wanted to shout out, but decided better of it. He didn't want to make a scene, but  
  
Harry knew that right after the feast he would tell Dumbledore about it - or did  
  
Dumbledore already know? After all, he did hire her as a new teacher - the Dark Arts  
  
teacher, at that. Harry looked at the Slytherin table and saw her sitting there, next to Hunter. No wonder they were going out. Hunter's father must have been the death eater named Nott. As Harry continued to think about it, he realized that Ridge wasn't such an uncommon name; what if Siren wasn't a descendant Slytherin? And if she was, in what way was she related to the Slytherins? Was it possible that she could be Voldemort's distant cousin, or something like that? It was then that Harry found that he didn't even know if Voldemort even had any relatives. In fact, he had never really thought about it before. Harry watched as Dumbledore returned to his chair and began to make his announcement.  
"Alas," he said, "yet another year has started! Hopefully you still have room in your heads  
  
for just a little more knowledge!" Dumbledore then looked at the Slytherin table, particularly at Siren. "As you can see," he continued, "We have some transfer students this year. They are all from Durmstrang, and I expect you all to give them their just respect.  
  
"As far as our staff goes, we have a few minor changes," it was here that he directed his  
  
arm to the right side of the staff table. He pointed towards a man who looked about 30,  
  
and was dressed in a dark navy cloak, with brown hair. "First of all," he said, smiling, "We have a new teacher, Professor Winston, who will be teaching the Defense Against Dark Arts this year."  
  
The students all clapped, and Dumbledore raised his hands, and everyone silenced  
  
themselves immediately.  
  
"Also note," Dumbledore continued, "that a select few of you have been chosen to  
  
participate in a new class--you know who you are."  
  
Harry could have sworn that Dumbledore looked specifically at him and winked. "This new class will be Hogwarts first ever Dark Arts class."  
  
Many students gasped. Harry could see Neville shudder at the mere thought of it.  
  
"This new class will be taught by Professor Siren Ridge, who will also be a part-time  
  
student."  
  
At this, Dumbledore pointed towards Siren. She stood up and gave a short wave, before  
  
sitting back down again. The Slytherins all cheered very loudly for her, and a few Gryffindors (especially the Weasley twins) all hissed at their table mockingly.  
  
"Well," Dumbledore said, smiling, "Let's eat!" And as he said this, the tables magically filled with foods of every kind.  
  
"I'm starfing," Krum said as he picked up his fork and began to eat.  
  
As the feast went on, Krum and Hermione were talking about what they had been doing over the summer, and Harry and Ron talked about what the Gryffindor quidditch team would be like that year.  
  
"What if Krum joins?" Ron said to Harry in a hush voice, "then he'll become the new seeker for sure!"  
  
"Not if I have anything to do about it," Harry replied quietly in a bitter tone.  
  
Their conversation was interrupted by a huge bang that was heard, coming from the  
  
Weasley twins. All of the students in the hall looked at the twins curiously, while the twins were simply  
  
laughing their heads off. Apparently, they had given Lee Jordon an exploding peanut.  
  
Ron frowned at them. "They gave me about 3 of those over the summer," he said, "They  
  
really hurt your tongue."  
  
Harry chuckled a bit.  
  
Once everyone finished eating, Dumbledore rose once more. "It is now time for me to speak of a more serious topic," he continued, "As you all know, Voldemort has risen again, and has kept very busy over the summer. Some of you have been involved directly by this, and some of you haven't. Regardless, I want to let you all know that you will be quite safe at Hogwarts. Our gates at the school have been heavily guarded, and we will have aurors staying here for the entire year, vacations and all. In addition to this, there are certain people here, as well as in Hogsmeade, who will be secretly keeping a close eye on things.  
  
"Well, it is now time for bed. Chop, chop! Let's go!"  
  
Everyone immediately stood up, and the prefects showed all of the first years to their houses.  
  
"I'll catch up with you two," Harry said to Ron and Hermione as they both left.  
  
"Why? Where are you going?" Ron asked.  
  
"I need to talk with Dumbledore," Harry answered.  
  
"Oh, ok," Ron answered, "see you later, then."  
  
"Bye!" Hermione said, and her, Ron, and Krum all left the Hall together.  
Harry slowly made his way towards the staff table where Dumbledore stood, talking to Siren. Harry wished she would leave.  
  
"Um, Professor Dumbledore," Harry said as he approached.  
  
"Ah, Harry!" Dumbledore smiled, "it's good to see you again! What is it?"  
  
Harry looked at Siren, and he could have sworn that there was a certain glow about her.  
"Er," Harry replied, "Can I talk to you about something...alone?"  
  
Siren seemed to understand, because she looked at Dumbledore sadly and said, "I should  
  
go." She left immediately.  
  
"Of course," Dumbledore said to Harry, with that ever-sparkling twinkle in his eyes. "We  
  
can discuss it in my office." Dumbledore led Harry out of the Main Hall and down the corridors until they reached Dumbledore's office. "Strawberry filling," Dumbledore said to the stone gargoyle (and Harry assumed that he  
  
had spoken the secret password to enter). As they made their way up the winding stairs, Harry remembered the vision he had of Siren. Should he tell Dumbledore?  
  
"Yes," said a voice in his head. This time, for once, Harry was going to tell Dumbledore everything.  
  
____________________________________________________________________________ ________  
  
Hope you liked it!  
  
-Summer :) 


	7. Siren's Song

Harry Potter and the True Heir of Slytherin  
  
Chapter 7: Siren's Song  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
Harry, following Professor Dumbledore, soon made his way to the top of the winding stairs and to the door of the office. Dumbledore opened the door, and let Harry in first. The phoenix that sat in a cage next to the office window looked at Harry, and flapped its  
  
wings excitedly.  
"Hey Fawkes," Harry said, walking over to him.  
  
Dumbledore walked into the office and closed the door behind him. "Have a seat, Harry," he said pointing to a chair on the opposite side of his desk. Harry sat down in it and Dumbledore sat in the chair behind the desk. Dumbledore placed his hands, folded, on the desk and looked at Harry.  
  
"I'm very sorry to hear about your relatives," he said kindly.  
  
Harry simply nodded his head solemnly and replied, "Have you found out who else was  
  
behind it? I mean, besides Voldemort?"  
  
"I'm afraid that it was only Voldemort behind it," Dumbledore said gravely, "Which means  
  
his powers have grown greatly."  
  
Harry eyebrows curved in towards his forehead. "But. Snape, he said that there was  
  
somebody else behind it, and so did Mad-Eye Moody - the REAL Mad-Eye that is - in the  
  
Daily Prophet."  
  
"Indeed there was somebody else behind ," Dumbledore continued, "and they could not  
  
help it, for they were under Voldemort's control, and were unwilling."  
  
All of this greatly confused Harry. Then, his memories of Voldemort came flooding back  
  
to him, and he remembered about the Imperius Curse.  
  
"They were under the Imperius Curse?" Harry asked.  
  
"Exactly," Dumbledore answered, taking a deep breath.  
  
Harry thought more about who the person could've been. They'd have to have been pretty  
  
powerful. "So, do you know who it was, though?" Harry asked anxiously.  
  
"Yes, I do," Dumbledore replied, "but they are now under my protection, and I cannot  
  
reveal their identity to anyone who does not already know. Perhaps, when you are ready,  
  
Harry, I will tell you, considering that they do not tell you first."  
  
Harry somewhat nodded and continued to think of who the person could possibly be. Was it someone he knew?  
  
"Now," Dumbledore continued, changing the topic, "Is there more that you wish to talk  
  
about, Harry?"  
  
"Oh, er, yeah," Harry said, losing his trail of thoughts, "Um, Sirius told me, over the summer, about the heirs of Slytherin. He said that they changed their last name to Ridge, and well....Siren, her last name is Ridge. Is she somehow related to Salazar, or to Voldemort?"  
  
Dumbledore raised his thick gray eyebrows. Harry couldn't tell if that was because he  
  
was surprised, shocked, or impressed. Harry didn't say anything, nor did Dumbledore. For a moment, Harry thought that he was in trouble, because Dumbledore seemed to be looking through Harry's mind, as if he was looking for the truth. Harry was starting to go through denial at that point, and even slight embarrassment. He had a strange feeling that what he had just suggested was completely stupid, and that Dumbledore must have thought him a fool. Dumbledore, however, smiled.  
  
"My, my," he said, still looking very intensely at Harry, "You are quite the clever  
  
teenager, Harry."  
  
Harry simply looked at Dumbledore. What was that supposed to mean? It wasn't that  
  
hard to figure it out, after all.  
  
"So, I'm right?" Harry asked calmly, "She is related to him?"  
  
Dumbledore nodded and replied, "Yes. You're very right. Siren, however, is nothing at  
  
all like Voldemort of Salazar, save the fact that she is very powerful, so you needn't worry."  
  
Harry wasn't very surprised at this, however. Something about her did remind him of  
  
Voldemort. It was her eyes. Or was it her hair? It was both of them, actually. "Oh," Harry replied, "so...is she Voldemort's niece or something? Distant cousin?" Dumbledore smiled and replied, "Oh no, Harry, much closer than that. Siren is  
  
Voldemort's granddaughter."  
  
Harry's jaw dropped a good inch or so. He could feel his mind overflowing with all sorts  
  
of questions and emotions; fear, anger, hate, confusion, interest, hopelessness. "What?" he finally exclaimed, "Voldemort had children?!"  
  
"Voldemort had one child, yes," Dumbledore replied, shaking his head , as though old  
  
memories were haunting his mind, "He had a son named Seth. Seth was a normal wizard who lived with his mother, Guinevere Keenan, who was once one of Voldemort's most trustworthy followers. He fell in love with her, when he still had the capability to love, and she bore him a child, Seth. However, Guinevere was never in love with Voldemort. Some claimed that she used him for his power and authority. She eventually left him, for some reason or another, and she lived with her brother, Angus. Once Voldemort found out where she was hiding, he attacked their home and killed both Angus and Guinevere, then took Seth, who was then only 6 years old, to live with him. Seth was thus raised to become another vessel for his father's evil.  
  
"Eventually, when Seth was matured, he fell in love with a Russian witch, named Raven  
  
Kozlovski. Kozlovski was muggleborn, so Voldemort forbade Seth to see her. Their love, however, was stronger than that, and Seth secretly left his father and moved to Moscow with Raven. Raven was also an animagus, and could turn into a beautiful black bird. Seth told her to remain as a bird for a while, for he knew that his father was after the both of them. Raven fled, and Seth was soonafter killed by his father. Raven, however, made her way safely to Rome, Italy. She hadn't told Seth that she was pregnant before she left, and Seth never knew he was to be a father.  
  
"It's tragic, really. If Seth had lived, he may have been able to fix the conflict between the  
  
heirs of Slytherin and the heirs of Gryffindor (which I can only assume Sirius told you  
  
about). But now, that burden lies upon you and Siren."  
  
"If she'd ever talk to me without taking off as if she'd seen a ghost," Harry replied dully.  
  
"And what do you mean by that?" Dumbledore asked curiously.  
  
"Every time she sees me," Harry replied, "she just takes off. It's almost as if she's afraid of  
  
me."  
  
"Should she be?" Dumbledore asked, his eyes twinkling behind his half moon spectacles.  
  
What on earth did he mean by that? Harry thought. Dumbledore just said that Siren was  
  
powerful, like Voldemort, so why should she fear Harry?  
  
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, somewhat suspiciously.  
  
Dumbledore, however, replied very seriously, "She knows who you are, Harry. She knows you're the heir of Gryffindor. She's probably afraid that you'll try to harm her once you knew of her ancestry."  
  
"What?" Harry laughed, though uneasily. "I'm not going to do anything. I should be  
  
worried about her, I mean, don't the Slytherins usually start the fighting anyways? And  
  
you did say that was powerful, right?"  
  
"Oh yes, very powerful," Dumbledore smiled. He looked at Harry for a moment, and  
  
Harry once again got the feeling that he was searching through his mind. "Well then," Dumbledore continued, "perhaps you should tell Siren of your good intentions. Let her know that you're not interested in fighting."  
  
Dumbledore sat up and paced around a bit, and finally stood before the large window  
  
which looked out towards the Forbidden Forest, and a few mountains which sprang up behind Hogsmeade.. He looked out at the horizon for a bit, as if he was looking for something that he knew was there, but just couldn't see. He then put his head down, in a somewhat disappointed way. Then, without looking away from the floor, Dumbledore spoke to Harry in a very quiet, saddened voice. "I fear that you may be in grave danger this year, Harry," he said. He finally looked at Harry. As Harry looked back at him, he noticed that the twinkle which was once behind his eyes had gone out. What used to look like a very charismatic Headmaster was now a tired, weary, old man. Though Dumbledore said no word to Harry at this point, Harry got the impression  
  
that even Dumbledore didn't know how they were going to stop Voldemort this time.  
  
"I'm afraid Siren may be your only hope, Harry," Dumbledore said to him.  
  
"What do you mean?" Harry asked, "is she more powerful than Voldemort?"  
  
Dumbledore smiled, reassuringly, but answered, "No. Not from what I can tell. Not yet,  
  
at least. However, you need more than just power to succeed. She alone may hold the secret that will stop Voldemort." Harry was very confused at this. "I don't understand," he said.  
  
Dumbledore simply smiled, and the twinkle in his eyes reappeared. "You will one day,  
  
Harry," he said. "You will."  
  
Dumbledore clasped his hands neatly behind his back and continued to look out the  
  
window. "Is there anything else you would like to talk about, Harry?" he asked.  
  
Harry thought about it for a few moments. He wanted to tell Dumbledore about the weird, enchanting music he seemed to hear most of the time around Siren, but what would Dumbledore say about that? He would probably think that Harry was crazy. Maybe Harry was crazy. Either way, he decided to tell him.  
  
"Yeah," Harry finally replied, "um, I know this sounds weird, but-" Harry tried to think  
  
of the right way to put it, "Well, a few times when I've been near Siren, I've heard  
  
music - almost like some sort of...enchanting song."  
  
Dumbledore turned away from the window to look at Harry. He raised his eyebrows. "Really? he asked with a slight laugh.  
  
Harry looked up innocently at Dumbledore. "Please tell me I haven't lost my marbles, Professor," he added.  
  
Dumbledore laughed at bit at this and shook his head. he walked back towards his desk  
  
and sat down again.  
  
"Lost your marbles?" Dumbledore repeated, "No, no. There's an explanation for it. You see, Harry Raven Kozlovski named her daughter Siren for a reason."  
  
After seeing that Harry still didn't understand, Dumbledore explained it a bit more.  
  
"You see, sirens were mythological creatures with very enchanting voices. They would  
  
use their songs to lure mariners towards them.  
  
"Now, when Siren was born, all who were present claimed to  
  
have heard a beautiful singing in their heads. Nobody knew why at the time, but some who are close to her are beginning to understand it. She cannot control it, however, form what she has told me. But you, harry, you are the youngest wizard I've ever known who has been able to hear her song."  
  
Harry was in awe. So it was Siren who was singing. How interesting.  
  
"So," Harry continued, "did she inherit this from her mom or something?"  
  
"No, not that I know of," Dumbledore replied, "I believe the only other person who was  
  
ever able to do that was Lady Andreala. Lady Andreala was a very powerful Dark Witch  
  
in the days when Hogwarts was built in Charms and Enchantments."  
  
"Andreala?" Harry asked, "that name seems familiar."  
  
"Perhaps you heard of her in History class?" Dumbledore smiled, "she was quite famous."  
  
"What did she do?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
"I'm sure you'll learn that in your Dark Arts class," Dumbledore replied, "I think Siren will be teaching a bit of the History of Dark Arts as well. Perhaps when she's ready, she'll explain to you herself who she inherited her enchanting song from."  
  
"Right," Harry replied. But Harry still didn't know why he saw a vision of Siren during  
  
the sorting ceremony. Was he just daydreaming, or was it part of the enchantment?  
  
"But something else is bothering you, I see," Dumbledore added.  
  
"What?" Harry asked, snapping out of his deep thoughts.  
  
"You look a little pre-occupied," Dumbledore continued, "is there anything else on your  
  
mind?"  
  
Harry wasn't sure if he wanted to tell Dumbledore about the vision. 'I promised myself I'd tell him everything this time,' Harry thought to himself. And so, taking deep breath, he told him.  
  
"Yeah, about the enchantment," Harry replied, "well, when I heard the singing, I sorta  
  
saw a vision with it, too."  
  
"A vision?" Dumbledore asked enthusiastically, "Well this should be interesting! Tell me  
  
about it."  
  
Harry took yet another deep breath and continued, "Well, I don't remember too much of  
  
it. It was weird - I saw the form of a girl against a really bright light. I remember seeing a  
  
lot of stars all around me. And when the shape got closer, I realized that it was Siren, and  
  
she was singing."  
  
Harry paused and looked at Dumbledore. He was staring attentively at Harry, as though  
  
he was expecting more to the vision. "That's it," Harry said uneasily. "Interesting indeed," Dumbledore said, still staring at Harry.  
  
"So," Harry said, feeling a little uncomfortable, "well, what does that mean?"  
  
Dumbledore placed his hands on the desk and shook his head slightly, "I haven't the  
  
faintest idea."  
  
Harry blinked stupidly at that. "Oh," he said, "OK..."  
  
Dumbledore smiled at Harry and replied, "There are many secrets to Siren - even I don't  
  
know all of them." He stood up and walked towards Fawkes's cage and stuck his hand  
  
through the bars to pet him.  
  
"I will think about the vision, for a while, though," he continued, "and see if I can't figure  
  
out what it means. I'll tell you immediately if I do, Harry."  
  
"Alright," Harry said, standing up himself, "I should probably go now. It's getting late."  
  
"Ah, yes," Dumbledore said, turning from Fawkes and walked towards the door. He  
  
opened it, and looked down at Harry. "I'll walk a bit of the way with you, Harry. Siren's office is on the way."  
  
"Oh," Harry said nervously, "why do you want to go there?"  
  
"Oh, well I thought that I might ask her about this vision of yours." Dumbledore replied,  
  
holding the door open for Harry.  
  
"No!" Harry said quickly.  
  
Dumbledore looked at him with a bit of surprise.  
  
"I mean-" Harry continued, "I don't really want her to know about it...do you think you  
  
can just leave my name out of it?"  
  
"Of course I can," Dumbledore replied kindly, following Harry out the door and down the  
  
winding stairs. Harry and Dumbledore made their way down the corridors leading to the Gryffindor  
  
common room. When they were 3/4 of the way there, Dumbledore stopped. Harry did as  
  
well.  
  
"Well, this is where we must part," said Dumbledore, "Goodnight Harry."  
  
"Goodnight Professor," Harry replied, and with that, Harry turned away to leave.  
  
"The password to your common room is 'Quidditch Champion,' by the way," Dumbledore  
  
called after him.  
  
"Oh, thanks," Harry called back, and he left. When Harry finally managed to get to the entrance to the Gryffindor common room, the Fat Lady was fast asleep.  
  
"Quidditch Champion," Harry said sleepily.  
  
The Fat Lady simply snored loudly, not taking any notice of Harry in her deep sleep.  
  
"I said, QUIDDITCH CHAMPION," Harry said much more loudly.  
  
The Fat Lady woke up with a start. "Right you are," she replied with a yawn. The painting swung open, allowing Harry to pass through. Harry planned on telling Ron and Hermione everything that had happened, in detail, oncehe got in. He took a deep breath, and walked through.  
  
____________________________________________________________________________ _  
  
I hope it that was enjoyable for you (sorry about the jacked up spacing...I couldn't fix it). You know what I found funny? I wrote this chapter more than a year ago, and the whole occlumency/legilimency thing from the Order of the Phoenix kinda ties in with this chapter. I mean, Dumbledore looks like he's reading Harry's mind and all....just kinda neat, I thought. I must have inspired JK :P I'm joking...I have nothing to do with Rowling or her wonderful books. Please don't sue me! *hides*  
  
-Summer :) 


	8. Dark Arts

Umm I just wanted to let you guys know that some of my chapters have been uploading weird...their spacing is all jacked up and stuff. They're still readable, as far as I know, but I'm sorry for any inconvenience it might cause you. I'm not sure if all of the chapters are weird like that or just a few, but I'll be trying to fix them when I can :)  
  
"The True Heir of Slytherin"  
  
Chapter 8: Dark Arts  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
"Where have you been?" Hermione asked Harry as he entered the Gryffindor common room. Only Hermione, Ron, Krum, Fred, and George remained awake. Everyone else was asleep in their dorm rooms. Harry sat down in the corner where Hermione and Ron were. Krum was being entertained by Fred and George's joke toys and candy near the fireplace.  
  
"I was talking with Professor Dumbledore," Harry replied.  
  
"About what?" Ron asked curiously, biting into a chocolate frog.  
  
"Siren," Harry replied in a quiet voice.  
  
Ron and Hermione both rolled their eyes.  
  
"Why are you so interested in her?" Hermione asked.  
  
"I think I know why," Ron laughed, then he put on an innocent little voice, "I think Harry likes her." Ron laughed a bit to himself, and Hermione rolled her eyes at him.  
  
"Now really," she added, "I don't think Harry would talk to Dumbledore just about some girl he likes." Hermione looked at Harry and continued in a kinder voice, "What's wrong, Harry?"  
  
"Siren's the real heir of Slytherin," Harry blurted in a hush voice, "But DON'T tell anyone!" Harry added quickly, just as Hermione was about to shout out. "Look," Harry continued, even quicker, "I don't think I was even supposed to tell you two, but she is. Voldemort is her grandfather, but she's nothing like him. She's supposed to be nice, just really powerful."  
  
Ron and Hermione were completely awestruck.  
  
"Woah," Ron said with huge eyes.  
  
There was a bit of uneasy silence amongst the three of them, neither knowing what to say next.  
  
"Yeah, nice joke, Harry," Hermione said, trying to laugh it off.  
  
"I'm not joking!" Harry exclaimed in frustration, "I'm serious! How else would she know the Malfoys? Or Snape? And I'm pretty sure that Hunter's dad is a Death Eater, too!"  
  
The three of them both looked towards Krum, Fred, and George to make sure they hadn't heard Harry being so loud. Fortunately they didn't.  
  
"But you said that she's not like You-Know-Who," replied Ron, "how would she know all of those Death Eaters if she's nothing like him?"  
  
"Yeah," added Hermione, "and if that's the reason why she knows them, then does that mean she knows who else was behind the attack ion the Dursleys?"  
  
Harry finally remembered what Dumbledore had said about that matter. He wished that Dumbledore would have told him who it was. "I don't know," Harry replied, "But Professor Dumbledore does. He said that they were unwilling, under the Imperius Curse."  
"So who is it?" Ron asked anxiously.  
  
"Dumbledore wouldn't tell me," Harry shrugged, "yet. I guess that person is in danger now or something. Probably from Voldemort. But anyways, they're under Dumbledore's protection now."  
  
Hermione gasped and put her hand over her mouth as she frantically tried to get Harry and Ron's attention.  
  
"What?" Ron asked, looking at her awkwardly.  
  
"What if it was Siren?" Hermione was finally able to whisper.  
  
Harry understood. It must have been Siren! She must be there under Dumbledore's protection. After all, on the train to Hogwarts, Snape did say that he was there to assure that someone showed up safely, and then Siren arrived. And it would explain why she was so afraid to talk to Harry.  
  
"Man," Ron replied uneasily. It was obvious that it all made sense to him, too.  
  
"But why would she not say anything?" Harry thought aloud, "Or Dumbledore. Why didn't he tell me?"  
  
"Well, isn't it obvious?" Hermione said quietly, making sure that Krum, Fred, or George wouldn't hear, "I mean, he already told you that she's the real heir of Slytherin. If he told you that she helped You-Know- Who kill the Dursleys, well, he probably thought that you might...y'know..."  
  
"Retaliate," Ron added, finishing Hermione's sentence.  
  
Harry was deep in thought. He certainly didn't blame Siren for anything. He knew she didn't mean to do it, right?  
  
"What if he was lying?" Harry replied, "What if she wasn't under Voldemort's control?"  
  
Ron flinched at the mention of Voldemort's name.  
  
"Why would he lie?" Hermione asked, "And why would Siren purposely do it?" You don't honestly think Dumbledore would hire and protect a murderer, do you?"  
  
Harry looked at Hermione. "Well," he said, "He has done it before. Remember Barty Crouch Junior?"  
  
"You're not saying that maybe he doesn't know?" Ron asked, "Like, Siren lied to him?"  
  
"It's possible," Harry added, "I mean, Sirius told me that all the heirs of Slytherin have wanted to destroy the heirs of Gryffindor. What makes you think that Siren's any different?"  
  
Ron and Hermione didn't reply for a while. Finally Hermione spoke up. "You think she's here to kill you? And that everything she's told Dumbledore is just a cover-up?"  
  
Harry wasn't sure about these suspicions, but he was sure not to trust Siren.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Eventually, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, and Krum all went to bed. Harry remained awake in his bed pondering all that had just been discussed. Was Siren really there to kill him? Or was she a spy for her grandfather? Or even worse, a new thought came into Harry's head: if Siren had submitted to Voldemort's Imperius curse once, what if she did it again while at Hogwarts? Or what is she was still under it?  
  
Harry didn't want to think about it anymore. He closed his eyes and fell into a uneasy sleep. As he slept, he had an unusual dream. In it, he saw a bright light. He looked up and saw stars, beautiful stars. The distant singing came back into his head as the silhouette came closer to him. It was Siren, but she wasn't singing this time. As she came closer to him, Harry realized it wasn't Siren at all, although it did greatly resemble her. The girl finally came to about a foot away from Harry. Her eyes were very seductive, and Harry was held in a trance. The enchanting singing soon turned into an evil chanting in some unknown language, much like that which Harry heard outside of Grachus's study... Then it happened - the girl pulled out a dagger. She continued to look at Harry as she plunged it deep into Harry's gut. The pain was excruciating, and the girl started to laugh, a high, cold laugh. Then, a dark haired man came into view. He stood beside the girl, and he looked at Harry, smiling evilly. As Harry was about to fall down from the pain, the man began to say something. His voice sounded exactly like Voldemort's, and he was speaking Parseltongue.  
  
"You won't survive it this time," he said.  
  
The laughter of the two people began to echo within Harry's head, and everything around him became dark and chaotic. As soon as it had all started, it all stopped. There was no sound, and the two people were no longer there. Harry looked around the pitch-black room. He suddenly jumped as he heard a girl screaming. It was his mother. He looked behind him to see something he had never seen before...his mother standing before Voldemort. She was holding a child (obviously Harry). She screamed once again as Voldemort aimed his wand at her. A green light flashed, and she fell to the floor, dead. Harry awoke with a start, sweating all over. His heart was beating as though he had just ran a mile. He looked around the room, expecting to see Voldemort somewhere. Harry could still feel where the dagger had stabbed him in the dream.  
  
Harry, breathing heavily, laid back down, and fell asleep once again into a dreamless rest. Not knowing whether or not it really meant anything, he decided not to tell anyone about the dream.  
  
*************  
  
Harry woke up the next morning remembering every vivid sound and action from the dream he had.  
  
"You awake Harry?" he heard Ron say from across the room.  
  
"Yeah," Harry replied sleepily, rubbing his head, "What class do we have first, Ron?"  
  
"Dark Arts," Ron sighed bitterly.  
  
"Oh, great," Harry muttered to himself.  
  
The two of them both got dressed and met Hermione and Krum in the common room.  
  
"We haff Dark Arts in fifteen minutes," Krum said to them groggily, rubbing his head and letting out a large yawn.  
  
"Yeah, I know," Ron replied, "Sounds like fun."  
  
"It should be," Krum replied, not noticing Ron's sarcasm, "I can't vait to see Siren teach,"  
  
he laughed. Hermione didn't say anything, noticing the nervous look on Harry's face.  
  
"Fifteen minutes?" Ron complained with a sigh, "What, no breakfast? Man, we really slept  
  
in."  
  
"I think everyone did," Krum answered.  
  
And so, the four of them left the Gryffindor common-room and made their way down the corridors, trying to find the Dark Arts room. They walked towards the Northern-most part of the castle, where they finally found the room. They hesitantly made their way into the classroom, and noticed that they were the last students to arrive. There were only about 12 desks in the room, and eight students, including Malfoy and his gang, already there.  
  
"You're late," Siren said from the front of the classroom.  
  
Harry tried not to make eye-contact with her as he found a seat.  
  
"Sorry, we couldn't find the room," Ron said, slightly blushing.  
  
"That's okay," Siren replied kindly, "Just try not to let it happen again."  
  
Ron, Hermione, and Krum all sat down in desks close to Harry. Hermione gave Harry a nervous look.  
  
"Well," Siren continued as the class settled, "I'll start with taking attendance."  
  
And with that, a piece of parchment appeared in front of Siren out of thin air, and it floated before her. She took out her wand and put it at the first name on the list. "Marie Abbott," she called out.  
  
A thin girl at the front of the class raised her hand, while pushing her blond hair behind her ears. She looked about 16 years old, and was a Hufflepuff.  
  
Siren checked the girl's name off on the list and continued. "Tyranus Campbell?" she said, looking at the class.  
  
A seventh year Ravenclaw boy in the back of the classroom raised his hand. Siren checked him off and continued down the list. "Vincent Crabbe," she said.  
  
Crabbe, who was sitting near the back of the class with Goyle and Malfoy, raised his arm. Siren looked at him, her eyes penetrating his. Harry guessed that she knew his father was a Death Eater. Siren didn't seem to like the spawn of Death Eaters too much, except for Hunter, of course, if indeed his father was a Death Eater.  
  
She finally checked him off. "Gregory Goyle," she called out bitterly.  
  
Goyle raised his hand hesitantly, noticing the loathing in Siren's voice when she called his name.  
  
"Hermione Granger," Siren added, kindly this time.  
  
Hermione proudly raised her hand.  
  
"Viktor Krum," Siren called out.  
  
"Here," Viktor replied, putting his hand up and laughing a bit.  
  
"Now, now," Siren smiled, "Don't laugh at your teacher, Mr. Krum." It was obvious that both of them found the idea of Siren being a teacher quite humorous. Siren checked off Viktor's name and called out the next name on the list.  
  
"Draco Malfoy," she said, rather quietly. Hate was very present in the tone of her voice. Draco smirked and raised his hand. Siren simply looked at him. "I really do hope that you, of all people, don't disrupt my class this term," she said coldly.  
  
Malfoy put his hand down quickly, afraid of Siren's warning.  
  
"Because if you do," Siren continued, "I assure you, you will pay."  
  
The class went absolutely silent. Even Krum looked a little nervous. As Siren continued to call out names, Harry was deep in thought about the dream he had had the previous night. He wanted to know who the girl was that looked like Siren, and why she tried to kill him.  
  
"Harry Potter," Siren called out, breaking Harry's thoughts. Harry slowly raised his hand as Siren looked at him and checked off his name.  
  
Siren continued to call names, but stopped when she got to Ron's name.  
  
`"Ron Weasley," she said as he put up his hand, "Are you by any chance related to Charlie Weasley?"  
  
Ron went a little pink as Siren spoke directly to him, and replied, "Er, yeah - he's my  
  
brother."  
  
"I see," Siren smiled as she checked off Ron's name on the list, "I met him over the summer. Nice guy."  
  
Ron nodded, going a little redder.  
  
Siren grabbed the attendance sheet and put it away. "Well," she said, "As you all know, this is a very special class. Professor Dumbledore greatly recommended it for a select few students, which are all of you.  
  
"Now, this class is finally being taught at Hogwarts under the gravest of circumstances, for it appears that all of you are, believe it or not, in some form of danger in regards to the Dark Lord and his followers. Some of you are involved more directly than others, but regardless of that, it is important that all of you learn to properly defend yourself, and that is what I will teach you."  
  
The class was very uneasy at this point, except for Crabbe, Goyle, and Malfoy, who quietly laughed when Siren said that they were all in danger from the Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Hermione, however, raised her hand right away.  
  
"Yes?" Siren asked her.  
  
"Sorry, professor," Hermione replied, "But you said that you'd teach us how to defend ourselves, but, isn't that what the Defense Against the Dark Arts class is for?"  
  
"Perhaps," Siren answered coolly, "Considering that Voldemort was going to attack all of you with boggarts and hinkypunks, which I can assure you that he will not."  
  
Siren walked a bit closer to Hermione and looked at the class eerily, "The only sure way to defend yourself against a dark art is to use a dark art yourself. It's a concept many of us don't like to deal with, but it's true. Some, however, like Professor Dumbledore, refuse to use a dark art of any kind. But let's be honest with one another, we're not as powerful as he is, are we? The Dark Arts are the only real defense we have."  
  
All of the Slytherin students seemed excited to begin, while others were rather hesitant. "But of course," Siren continued, "We will not get into spells and curses right away. That would be suicide."  
  
Malfoy and his gang became disappointed at that statement, for they obviously wanted to learn as many dark arts as they could.  
  
"Anyways," Siren continued, "for those of you who don't already know, my name is Siren Ridge, and I will be teaching you the art of Dark Magic. You can call me Professor Ridge, Miss Ridge, Siren, whatever. I really don't care. All I care about is that you pay attention.  
  
"There are more rules in this class than in any other class, and if you purposely break even ONE of them, you will be kicked out of this school, never to return. You must understand that the magic taught in this classroom will be very dangerous, and you all must be very serious and careful about what you are doing. The slightest mistake in an incantation can even kill someone, so please pay attention to what you will be doing!  
  
"There is to be no horseplay in this classroom, understand? I don't want any fooling around at all. Also, there is to be no arguing. I know that not all of the students in this class get along, but if you make even one rude comment, there will be many points taken away from your house - even if it happens to be my house as well."  
  
She shot a nasty look at Draco, as if daring him to go against her words. "So," she continued, "time to get on with today's lesson. Today, of course, will simply be an introduction, for in order to perform the Dark Arts, one must fully understand them. So, I've decided that we shall be learning about Salazar Slytherin, and his conversion to darkness.  
  
"I would like you all to take out your History of Dark Magic textbooks, and turn to page 55."  
  
Ron looked at Harry uneasily. "Salazar Slytherin?" he said quietly. "This oughta be fun."  
  
"I'll bet," Harry replied nervously.  
  
Harry reached into his book-bag and took out his textbook. He turned it to page 55, and read the heading, which said, 'THE LIFE OF SALAZAR SLYTHERIN.'  
  
Siren began to read out loud from the textbook. "The life of Salazar Slytherin is not well-known, but what is known about him is somewhat interesting, though frightening nonetheless. While nobody knows exactly why Salazar became a Dark Wizard, it is known that he remains as one of the most powerful Dark Wizards in history."  
  
Siren then closed the textbook which she was holding, and looked at the class, slightly smiling. "Now that is where the book is wrong," she added. "There remains but 3 people today who truly know why Salazar converted, and those three people are my mother, Voldemort and myself."  
  
Most of the students flinched at the name of Voldemort, but Marie Abbot raised her hand.  
  
"Question?" Siren asked her.  
  
"Yes," Marie replied nervously, "how do you and your mother know why Salazar Slytherin converted?"  
  
Siren laughed a bit and replied, "Don't ask my why I know it, just believe me when I say that I do. All of your questions will soon be answered. All in good time, Marie."  
  
The entire class was extremely puzzled at this, except for Hermione, Ron, and Harry, who already knew the truth. For some odd reason, Harry felt like telling the entire class who Siren's grandfather was, but decided better of it.  
  
"First off, let's talk about where Salazar Slytherin grew up," Siren continued, "Salazar was born in Rome, Italy, in 156 A.D.. At this time, Antonius Pius was Rome's Emperor. I just want to say that I find it hilarious that the Slytherin House is so obsessed with being purebloods. I say this because Salazar Slytherin, was, himself, muggle-born."  
  
Malfoy and his gang scoffed at this, especially Malfoy, who's chin had dropped about an inch.  
  
"Now, like most muggle-borns, Salazar didn't know he was a wizard until he was a bit older. However, he did, like most muggle-borns, make odd things happen, and his parents didn't know why. Eventually, his neighbours noticed these odd occurrences and began to shun Salazar's family. "As more people found out about it, the more Salazar was considered evil or wicked. This was horrible for his parent's reputation, so they disowned him. Salazar at that point was only five years old, and couldn't fend for himself. The Ministry of Magic, which was then called the Council of Magic, heard about Salazar, and sent someone to care for him. That person's name was Marcus Gryffindor, Godric Gryffindor's father."  
  
Harry was in shock. He thought the Gryffindors hated the Slytherins, so why would they look after each other?  
  
"Excuse me?" Harry said, putting up his hand.  
  
Siren looked at him, and hesitantly replied, "Yes?"  
  
"I thought the Gryffindor family and the Slytherin family hated each other," Harry said, somewhat rudely.  
  
Siren went a little pink in the face as Harry said this, and Hermione gave Harry an uneasy look which simple said, 'why did u have to say that?'  
  
"Well," Siren replied, avoiding eye-contact with Harry, "This was before the conflict arose. If you'll let me continue, I'll tell you how the conflict started in the first place."  
  
"I already know how it came about," Harry snapped back, "Salazar killed Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff when he turned evil. And every heir of Slytherin since then has been evil."  
  
The classroom was completely silent, and even the air they breathed was uncomfortable. Harry didn't know why he was saying all of this. A certain fury just seemed to be kindled within him and he couldn't stop himself. It was as if he knew for a fact that Siren was evil, just like Voldemort. Just like Salazar Slytherin. Siren, however, remained absolutely silent. She looked at Harry for a brief moment, and Harry could once again hear a distant singing. This time, the song was very lamentable, and very depressing. The music immediately stopped as Siren began to speak.  
  
"That isn't true," she said quietly, "now don't interrupt me again."  
  
Harry suddenly felt very guilty for saying all that he did, but Siren, however, continued talking as if nothing had happened.  
  
"Marcus Gryffindor raised Salazar as if he was his own son. Godric Gryffindor, who was three years older than Salazar, was like a brother to him. As they grew older, Salazar and Godric became best friends. The continued to be best friends all the way into adulthood, when they met Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff. The four of them decided to build Hogwarts, and it took them eight years to do so. Hogwarts was completed in 184 A.D., when Salazar was only 28 years old.  
  
"I am going to pause for a bit here, and explain a little bit of Roman history to you. It will all make sense to you soon. Now, for centuries before Antonius Pius, the Roman emperors were known to be cruel. Many of them killed for sport, for entertainment; for the glory of Rome.  
  
"I should mention that at the time when Salazar was disowned by his family and thrown out of Rome, a new emperor lived. His name was Marcus Aerelius. He was kinder than most emperors had been, even though he had Rome involved in many wars, and the Roman people loved him for it. Salazar, on the other hand, who now hated the Roman people, loathed Marcus Aerelius. Salazar loathed anything that made the Roman people happy. That loathing built up within Salazar over the years, and that hate and anger he carried within himself soon leaked out. Four years before Hogwarts was completed, Salazar, who had become extremely powerful in magic, took some time off to visit Rome. While he was there, he noticed how happy the Romans were. He decided to end that happiness.  
  
"Salazar placed a curse upon the Emperor's nineteen year old son, Commodus, which would make him evil and power hungry. No one ever found out what Salazar had done to Commodus. Commodus then killed his father and became Rome's new Emperor. He was a cruel, sadistic, and wicked emperor, whom the Roman majority hated. He was given whatever he wanted. He had his fair share of little boys and little girls pleasurably, and he killed anyone who stood against him. The Roman people were no longer happy, but rather depressed and fearful. Thus, Salazar got revenge upon Rome.  
  
"That was the very first evil-doing that Salazar Slytherin ever committed. I will tell you right now that everyone in this classroom is the first to hear this tale outside of Salazar's descendants. But there is much more to it than just that."  
  
Everyone in the room was very attentive to Siren's every word. She had the ability to make people pay attention to even the slightest thing that came out of her mouth.  
  
"Of course, by the time Commodus had become emperor, Salazar had become evil. In that same year he created the Chamber of Secrets, which I'm sure you're all familiar with. Salazar then secretly continued to perform many Dark Arts, and only three years after Hogwarts was created was he discovered to be a Dark Wizard.  
  
"You see, the anger that Salazar had for Rome was the evil that slowly grew within him, and eventually turned him to darkness. This just goes to prove that the actions of others can have a surprising effect on a person, and thus on the entire world.  
  
"Once Salazar was recognized as a dark wizard, his partners, Godric, Rowena, and Helga, all confronted him. They seemed to have thought that they could have helped him, or at least put his evil ways to an end. This confrontation, however, had the exact opposite effect. It caused even more conflict between the four of them, especially between Godric and Salazar, who it's safe to say were no longer best friends. Salazar, blinded by his hatred for muggles, argued that only wizards of pureblood, or blood untainted by muggle blood as he called it, should be allowed into Hogwarts. The other founders, of course, disagreed.  
  
"Through the following years, Salazar became the most powerful wizard the world had ever seen. His power succeeded even that of the famous Merlin. Even his descendant, Voldemort, has yet to reach the strength that Salazar Slytherin possessed.  
  
"As the conflicts between Salazar Slytherin, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff grew, the stronger Salazar became. When the year 195 A.D. came around, Salazar decided to show off his powers, and he brutally murdered Rowena Ravenclaw. Helga Hufflepuff was the next to go in 197 A.D.. Godric Gryffindor was the only one who survived Salazar's wrath long enough to seek revenge. Three years after Helga's death, the Gryffindor vs. Slytherin conflict began, both between Godric and Salazar, and between the Gryffindor and Slytherin houses at Hogwarts.  
"Ten years after Helga's death, Godric decided to stop hiding from Salazar, and rather to face off with him for the last time. He challenged Salazar to a duel, and Salazar, who had become very proud of his powers, agreed. The two of them met in a forest near London, where they had their final battle. The duel, it is said, lasted for two hours, and at the climax of it, it seemed as though Salazar would win. But as he aimed his wand down upon the fallen Godric, he was stabbed by a sword that Godric had obtained using the Summoning Charm. The sword flew at Salazar, and killed him, leaving him hanging from the sword in mid-air. Godric then left, fearing that Salazar's followers were near.  
  
"Salazar's daughter, Serena, later found her dead father hanging from Godric's Sword. She took the sword and buried her father, while at the same time declaring war upon Godric and his family. By that time Serena was 31 years of age, she had inherited much of her father's powers. She then sought out Godric Gryffindor and killed him with the very sword which had killed Salazar.  
  
"That sword, as some of you may know, is now known as the Sword of Gryffindor, and has been passed down to each heir of Gryffindor until only recently. Professor Dumbledore now has possession of that sword.  
  
"Alright, any questions?"  
  
The entire classroom was silent, and Harry was in shock. So that was how it all started? He thought, just because the Romans had ostracized Salazar Slytherin?  
  
Krum slowly raised his hand and asked, "Siren, how do you know all ov this? They haff never taught it at Durmstrang."  
  
"You'll all find out when I'm ready to tell you," Siren replied mysteriously. She opened her textbook once more and added, "For homework, I would like you all to read about Lady Andreala, who was mother to Salazar's child. There are about three pages on her in your History of Dark Magic textbooks, starting on page 60, I believe. I want you all to thoroughly read the chapter, because we will be discussing her life tomorrow. There are also a few questions at the end of the chapter I would like you all to answer.  
  
"Well, you can get started now if you'd like, there's only 15 minutes left in the class."  
  
Harry turned around in his chair to talk to Ron, who was behind him.  
  
"Can you believe that?" Ron asked him, amazed, "we're the first people to hear the truth about it all! And how did she meet Charlie, I wonder?"  
  
"How do you know she isn't lying?" Harry said quietly.  
  
Ron raised his eyebrows. "Why would she lie about meeting Charlie?" he asked curiously.  
  
"No, not that," Harry replied, "I mean, about Salazar, and how he turned evil and everything."  
  
"Oh," Ron sighed, "Well, why would she lie about that? Besides, it seems pretty legitimate to me."  
  
"I guess so," Harry mumbled. He picked up his textbook from off of his desk and turned it to page 60. It said, 'The History of Andreala Durmstrang and Salazar Slytherin,' in black, Gothic letters. Below it was a picture, and Harry literally dropped his book at the sight of it. He couldn't believe what he was looking at. Within the picture was the man and the girl from Harry's dream the night before. The girl winked at him and the man smiled evilly. There was something written below the picture, which said, "The famous painting of Andreala and Salazar which hangs in the Grand Hall of Durmstrang's School of Magic." It was Salazar Slytherin and Lady Andreala who had attacked Harry in his dreams.  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
Mwahahaha...yeah not that jaw-dropping, but whatever lol.  
  
Becca- Yeah I know Dumbledore got a lil excited in the last chapter. I wrote it over a year ago...before I was really HP literate lol.  
  
Isn't it weird how some things in my fic are corresponding with The Order of the Phoenix?? I thought it was totally weird, the whole dream thing...but the dreams in my fic are there for a different reason than the ones in HP5 lol.  
  
-Summer :) 


	9. The Tale of Andreala Durmstrang

Chapter 9: The Tale of Andreala Durmstrang ____________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________  
  
Later on, when Harry, Hermione and Ron were done all of their classes, they went into the Gryffindor common room. They were just about to start doing their Charms homework when Ron finally said, "Harry, what's wrong? You look like you've just killed somebody."  
  
"Yeah," Hermione agreed in a concerned tone, "what's wrong?"  
  
'They want to know what's wrong?' Harry thought to himself, 'My entire life is wrong. Nothing's going right.' Harry didn't answer right away, but instead he reached into his book-bag and took our his History of Dark Magic textbook. Hermione and Ron watched nervously as Harry turned it to the page with the picture of Lady Andreala and Salazar Slytherin.  
  
"That," Harry said angrily. "That's what's wrong with me." He pointed his shaking finger at the picture. Ron took the book from Harry and looked at the picture. Hermione slightly jumped when the picture of Salazar hissed at her (obviously speaking parseltongue).  
  
"Oh," Ron said, carefully setting the textbook down on the coffee table which was in front of the couch they were all sitting on, "Yeah, I'm not too eager to learn about Father Evil either."  
  
"It's not that," Harry said, not taking his eyes off of the picture. He told them all about the dream he had, and how he only realized it was Andreala and Salazar when he saw the picture.  
  
"But, how did you know what they looked like if you've never seen them until today?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Woah," Ron interrupted as Harry was about to answer, "maybe You-Know- Who made you psychic, too..."  
  
"I don't know about that," Harry replied, shaking his head slightly. "It's probably just something to do with Siren's, er, song."  
  
Ron and Hermione both looked at each Harry, rather confused.  
  
"What do you mean? What does Siren have to do with this?" Hermione asked.  
  
It was then that Harry realized that he had never told Ron or Hermione about Siren's song. He told them all about it, and what Dumbledore had told him about Siren having a lot of secrets to her.  
  
"I knew it!" Ron exclaimed in a hush voice.  
  
"Knew what?" Hermione asked, giving him an odd look.  
  
"I knew Siren was an enchantress!" Ron said, obviously proud of himself.  
  
"An enchantress?" Harry asked, "What's that?" He finally looked away from the picure in the textbook.  
  
"An enchantress, y'know," Ron replied, "A witch that has the ability to enchant people...well, usually wizards and muggle guys...without even trying. They can enchant people with their voices, their beauty, their eyes...Siren obviously has all of that." Ron smiled stupidly at that.  
  
"But what about the vision I saw during the sorting ceremony?" Harry asked, ignoring Ron's obvious infatuation. "Was that an enchantment?" "I don't know, probably," Ron replied, shaking his head, "but the song you heard definately was. But I've never actually heard of an enchanting vision." Ron reached into his bookbag and pulled out a small box which had some Bernie Botts Every Flavoured Beans in it. He took a few and replied, "It's weird, though - enchantresses are really rare." He offered Hermione an Every Flavoured Bean. "Want one?"  
  
"No thanks," Hermione mumbled. She had her head burried deep into her own History of Dark Magic textbook, obviously reading about Andreala.  
  
"Are there any other enchantresses that exist today?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
"Not that I know of," Ron replied, "I've only heard of one before, and she lived about 500 years ago. Her name was Pricsilla. Kind of a whore, I think."  
  
"Ron!" Hermione scolded, giving him a nasty look.  
  
"It's true," Ron said, shrugging his shoulders. Hermione rolled her eyes and continued to read.  
  
Harry picked up his textbook again and looked at the picture, more at Salazar than at anything else.  
"Why have you befriended a mudblood?" Andreala said quietly to Harry in a slight Russian accent.  
  
"What?" Harry said quietly, so that Ron and Hermione wouldn't hear.  
  
"That girl," Salazar hissed. Harry realized that Salazar was speaking in parseltongue. Salazar then pointed to Hermione, who was quietly reading on the left side of Harry.  
  
"I don't see why you care," Harry replied, looking at Salazar, "You were muggle-born, too."  
  
With that, Harry slammed the textbook shut. It was a very interesting thought, too. Salazar was the one who started the whole conflict between purebloods and non-purebloods. But why would he hate "mudbloods" so much if he was a "mudblood" himself? He was about to ask Hermione and Ron that question until Hermione finally stopped reading and smiled.  
  
"It's all in here!" she exclaimed, showing the page she was reading to both Ron and Harry. "It says that Andreala was the first ever enchantress discovered. Apparently she was very powerful with charms and such, but especially in the Dark Arts, AND," Hermione flipped a page back and pointed out a sentence, "Lady Andreala was the only founder of Durmstrang School of Magic, which was named after her surname." Hermione looked up at Harry and Ron, awaiting their comments.  
  
"I suppose that explains a lot about Siren," Ron said finally, "I mean, if Andreala was th mother of Salazar's only child, then Siren's obviously Andreala's heir as well. She must have inherited her enchantress- ness from Lady Andreala."  
  
Before Harry had a chance to agree, Fred and George walked up to Harry, along with Krum. Following them was the entire Gryffindor quidditch team.  
  
"Harry, we've come to a decision," Alicia Spinnet said.  
  
'Oh great,' Harry thought, 'they're kicking me off the team so that Krum can be their new seeker.' "Okay," Harry said, eyeing them all suspiciously.  
  
"My dear Harry," Fred said solemnly, as if he was about to announce something very tragic, "it is our duty to inform you that you will no longer be the seeker of our team."  
  
"What?" Harry said angrilly through gritted teeth. He could feel his fists tightening.  
  
Ron watched Harry apprehensively. "Viktor, here, will be joining the team," said George.  
  
"Uh oh," Hermione said quietly, noticing the look of pure hate that was on Harry's face.  
  
"Really?" Harry asked, trying his best not to lunge at Krum.  
  
"Really," Angelina Johnson agreed. "Krum has joined our team, hopefully with the permission of our new captain."  
  
"New captain?" Harry exclaimed, "You chose a new captain without even discussing it with me?"  
  
"Yes," Fred replied, smiling, "We've all agreed that you're our new captain."  
  
"See," Katie Belle said, "You're not JUST the seeker anymore, you're the seeker AND our captain."  
  
Harry's fists returned to normal. "But, you said Viktor's joining-"  
  
"I am," Viktor interupted, "Vith you permission, I vould like to be your new keeper."  
  
"Keeper?" Harry asked, suprised, "You can play keeper?"  
  
"Almost as good as he can play seeker," Hermione smiled, standing up and holding Krum's hand.  
  
"You were in on this?" Harry asked Hermione with a slight smile.  
  
"I knew about it," she replied, "But I didn't know they'd present the idea to you in such a manner-"  
  
"Me and Fred thought it'd be funny if we made you think we were kicking you off the team," George laughed. "Ron knew about it. I'm suprised he didn't tell you."  
  
Ron started to laugh, and so did everyone else, including Harry.  
  
"So I haff your permission?" Krum asked Harry.  
  
Harry had never felt the sort of superiority that he felt then. THE Viktor Krum was asking his permission to join the Gryffindor team. Harry would be Viktor's captain. Harry couldn't help but smile.  
  
"Yeah," Harry replied with a slight chuckle. He shook Krum's hand, and the rest of the Gryffindor students (who had been closely watching the entire time) erupted into cheers. With all of the happiness surrounding him, Harry forgot all about his dream, Siren, Salazar, and Andreala. But most of all, Harry forgot all about his Dark Arts homework, which he never ended up doing that night.  
  
*****  
  
Harry's dreams were completely normal and happy that night, and when he awoke in the morning, he couldn't wait for quidditch practice, which he had planned for that night.  
  
"You're kidding," Ron said to him after Harry told him about the quidditch practice as they sat down to breakfast in the Great Hall.  
  
"What?" Harry asked, biting into a piece of bacon.  
  
"You're going to be just like Wood," Ron laughed, "I mean, the season starts in 4 weeks. Remember how much you hated it when Oliver dragged you to quidditch practice a million times a week, at dawn?"  
  
"I'm not going to be like Wood," Harry replied with a full mouth, "I just want to see how the team will play now that Krum's our keeper."  
  
"I think it's a good idea," said Hermione, who was sitting on the other side of Ron, "to get the team adjusted to your new player."  
  
Hermione plopped a large textbook down at the table and began to read it.  
  
"What' that?" Ron asked her, trying to read the title.  
  
"Basic Hexes and Curses," Hermione replied, sipping some orange juice from her goblet, "It's actually quite interesting."  
  
"Hermione, you find all books interesting," Ron said, watching the post owls soar through the windows. The morning post had arrived.  
  
Harry looked at Siren's textbook and he suddenly realized that he had forgotten all about his Dark Arts homework. "Oh no," he said, "I forgot to read that chapter on Lady Andreala." As he said this, he began to remember the dream he had about Salazar and Andreala. As he remembered what Andreala looked like, he once again began to hear singing, but this time it was sad, lamenting something. Harry looked over towards the Slytherin table, and sure enough, Siren was there. She was sitting next to Hunter, who was sitting next to Malfoy. The two seemed to be deep in conversation. Harry continued to watch with Hunter, and as he continued to stare, he was distracted by Ron and Hermione, bickering over something.  
  
"Don't start with that SPEW stuff again," Ron sighed.  
  
"It's not my fault that thy're enslaved into doing everything around here," Hermione snapped.  
  
"Hermione," Ron exclaimed, "They're FREE elves. They get PAID. The LIKE to work."  
  
"Oh shut up," Hermione replied, beginning to read, once again.  
  
"Or what?" Ron laughed, "You'll take points away from me, Miss "I'm-a- prefect-now-and-you're-not"?"  
  
"I just might," Hermione replied, sitting up straight, her prefect badge reflecting in the light.  
  
Ron, frustrated, turned to Harry and gave him an exasperated look, muttering, "Impossible, that girl."  
  
Harry returned his gaze to Siren. He looked all along the Slytherin table, but he couldn't see her. 'She must have left,' Harry thought.  
  
"I don't know about those two," Ron said to Harry.  
  
"What?" Harry asked, looking at Ron, "Who?"  
  
"Them," Ron replied, pointing towards the main entrance to the Great Hall. There stood Siren and Hunter, holding hands and talking.  
  
"Weird," Ron continued, "You'd think she doesn't even like Hunter, the way she acts around him."  
  
Harry looked at Ron, and answered, "Maybe she doesn't."  
  
Harry looked at Siren and Hunter once again. Hunter leaned his head down and kissed Siren on the lips. He then left the Great Hall. Siren returned to the her table, sitting next to a Slytherin Transfer student.  
  
"She's sure friendly then," Ron replied, returning to his breakfast.  
  
*****  
  
Harry and Ron made their way up the stairs which lead to the corridor near the Divination room. As they entered, the familiar stench of perfume filled their nostrils. It was a very stuffy atmosphere, and Harry felt like going back to bed. Harry and Ron took their seats at the circular table which was closest to the window, hoping to breath the fresh air which might seep through from outside.  
  
"Why are there Hufflepuffs AND Ravenclaws here?" Ron asked, spotting Hannah Abbot sitting next to one of Cho's friends from Ravenclaw.  
  
"I don't know," Harry replied, "Maybe it's an all-house class or something." Harry looked around the classroom, hoping to see Cho, but she couldn't be found. Harry hadn't seen her at all since he arrived at Hogwarts, and he was hoping that she hadn't switched schools.  
  
"Er, Ron?" Harry asked him, "Have you seen Cho at all lately?"  
  
Ron looked at Harry, "No," he said, "Hate to say it, but I think she might have gone somewhere else this year. I heard that her parents were afraid to send her here. they're still worried about the safety of the place after what happened to Cedric."  
  
"Oh," Harry said, his shoulders dropping. Suddenly his stomach seemed very heavy, and he let out a sigh.  
  
"Oh, this is great," Ron said, eyeing the entrance to the room.  
  
Siren emerged from the ladder-like stairs. The boys in the room watched as she tried to find a seat. Lavender Brown scoffed as the boys diverted all of their attention to Siren's presence. Siren, however, took no notice of all the attention. She looked for a seat, and the only one left was at Harry and Ron's table. She noticed Harry sitting there, but nevertheless sat down opposite him, though apprehensively. As she did, the curtains from across the room blew open, and in walked Professor Trelawney, with her bug-like glasses and a bright green dress.  
  
"Welcome to your first class of Divination for this year," she said, in no more than a whisper, "I thought that for today's class, we would discuss any paranormal activities some of us may have experienced over the summer."  
  
Ron leaned closely to Harry, "You should tell her about your dream," he said, silently laughing.  
  
"What dream?" Professor Trelawney asked, looking at the two of them. Ron and Harry were amazed that she had actually heard Ron's comment.  
  
"It's nothing," Harry mumbled, not wanting to share it with the class.  
  
"Oh, do tell, Harry," Trelawney replied, "Was it a nightmare? A preminition? A vision of your own death?" The very thought of Harry having a terrible dream seemed to interest her very much.  
  
Harry, the whole class watching (including Siren), was forced to tell it, and he did, though he left out the fact that he knew the man and woman were Salazar and Andreala.  
  
Professor Trelawney was very interested, and asked many questions ("Did you bleed a lot in the dream?"). If there was anyone who was more interested in the dream than Trelawney, it was Siren. She payed very close attention to Harry's description of the dream, and Harry soon had the impression that Siren knew who it was that had stabbed him. Eventually, the class ended with Professor Trelawney giving them a palmistry assignment. They had to read the palms of two people at their table, and write down their predictions. Harry had no choice other than to read Siren's palm as well as Ron's, for the three of them were he only ones at the table.  
  
Harry did Ron's first while Siren watched. Harry simply made up some bogus future-telling for Ron, and wrote it down. Then, it was Harry's turn to do Siren's. Ron, meanwhile, tried to busy himself with his Unfinished Dark Arts homework, hoping that Siren wouldn't notice.  
  
Harry was a bit apprehensive as Siren moved closer to him from across the table. She was now sitting next to him, and Ron desperately tried to hide his homework.  
  
"Want me to read yours first, then?" Harry asked her dully.  
  
"Okay," she replied, putting her hand out infront of him. Harry took it and noticed that her hand was very warm and soft. Her milky skin seemed to glow before his eyes.  
  
"Don't know how to do it, do you?" she laughed.  
  
"Huh?" Harry asked, snapping out of his trance.  
  
"Well, it's just that you're staring at my hand with a stupid look on your face," she replied. "Need help?"  
  
"Nah, I'll just make it up," Harry answered.  
  
Harry looked down at her palm. The creases in her hand weren't very deep, and seemed all to intertwine with each other. Then it happened. There was a flash of light and Harry could see Voldemort infront of him, holding a sword. Before Harry could react, the sword crashed down upon Harry's head, and he could feel his scar burning.  
  
"Harry?" Siren asked worriedly.  
  
Harry came back to his senses. He had just had another vision. Another vision of death.  
  
"Are you okay?" Siren asked, "You look a little dazed."  
  
Harry let go of her hand immediately and grabbed at his scar. The pain was still there. "Your grandfather-" he started.  
  
"What?" Siren asked, her eyes widening.  
  
"He was in one of my visions-"  
  
"How do you know about my grand-...did you say visions?" Siren asked. She looked at Harry suspiciously, "You're the one Dumbledore was talking about, who was having the visions?"  
  
Harry's scar started to feel better, and he nodded his head.  
  
"Oh-" she said, a little shocked. Infact, she seemed a little embarrassed. Ron, on the other hand, was deep into his homework, and didn't heed to their conversation.  
  
"Don't tell anyone, please?" Siren asked him.  
  
"I won't," Harry replied. He was very confused. Harry didn't know what was wrong with him. Why did he see a vision of Voldemort killing him?  
  
"He's probably just trying to frighten you," Siren said quietly, "My grandfather is sometimes really protective of me. He probably couldn't stand the fact that you were holding my hand and talking with me." She shook her head and layed back in her chair, sighing. "I hate him so mcuh," she muttered.  
  
"Yeah," Harry replied, feeling his scar, "Me too."  
  
*****  
  
"Alright," Hermione said at lunch time as her, Ron, Harry, and Krum were walking along the lake, "When's the first game?"  
  
"I think it's in about 3 1/2 weeks," Harry replied, "and McGonagall hinted that we'd be playing Hufflepuff in the first game."  
  
"Are they any good?" Krum asked, "I mean, vill ve beat them?"  
  
"Are you kidding?" Ron laughed, "Their team's a joke! Of course you'll win." "I don't know," Hermioen replied, "A lot of the quidditch players on their team graduated last year and the year prior. They have an all new team now."  
  
"Same vith Slytherin," Krum added, "Hunter has told me he is their beater now. And Draco vill be their new captain. I think they haff new chasers as vell."  
  
"Draco's running the team?" Ron laughed, "that lil git couldn't be a team captain if his life depended on it. And who are their new chasers?"  
  
"Transver students, I think," Krum replied, "at least most ov them are. Hunter also said that Siren is a beater, too."  
  
Harry's heart sank. He really hoped that Siren wasn't an aggressive beater, because the aggressiveness in her family always seemed to end in fatalities.  
  
*****  
  
Harry and Ron went into the Great Hall for the remainder of their lunchtime. Hermione and Krum had left them to go see Hagrid, who Hermione had promised to introduce Krum to. Harry and Ron stayed behind to work on their unfinished homework, which was mostly from the Dark Arts.  
  
As they opened their textbooks, they could hear Draco, at the Slytherin table, yelling t someone about quidditch. Harry looked up to see that it was Siren who he was yelling at. Siren must have heard enough of him, though, because she stood up, and seemed to tower over Draco, who was still sitting down. She said something to him, then shoved him. As she turned to walk away, she saw Harry and Ron. She hesitated, then made her way towards them. Dracos' eyes narrowed in pure hate as he watched her sit down opposite from Harry and Ron at the Gryffindor table.  
  
"Whatcha doing?" she asked happily.  
  
"Nothing," Ron said quickly, trying to hide his History of Dark Magic textbook, "just Potions homework. Lots of Potions homework."  
  
"Professor Snape didn't give us any homework," Siren laughed. She obviously knew what they were really doing.  
  
"I forgot that you're in our Potions class," Ron muttered. He put his head down and turned a little pink.  
  
"Trouble with Draco?" Harry asked her.  
  
"Yeah," Siren sighed, "He's bitching about wanting to use my broom because he's the MVP of the team." Siren no longer seemed to be nervous around Harry.  
  
"What kind of broom do you have?" Harry asked her, finding a topic in which they were both interested.  
  
"Firebolt," Siren replied, "my mother bought it for me over the summer - because I stayed with her the whole summer, y'know?"  
  
"I have a Firebolt, too," Harry replied, "Are you the new Slytherin beater?"  
  
"Yeah, Hunter and I are," She replied cooly. "Actually, Harry, Hunter's what I wanted to talk about with you."  
  
As she said this, Hunter approached the table.  
  
"Hey," he sad, putting his hands on Siren's shoulders, "what are you doing at their table?"  
  
Siren looked a little worried, but calmly replied, "Ron, here, wanted me to help him with his Dark Arts homework, that's all." "Ah," Hunter sad, shooting Ron a stare of complete loathing. "Are we still on for tonight?" he asked her.  
  
"Yeah," she replied, "8:00, right?"  
  
"Right," Hunter replied. He leant down and kissed Siren on the cheek, "I'll see you then." He began to walk away.  
  
"Bye," Siren called after him, with a smile which looked very forced.  
  
"What about him?" Harry asked, concerned, after Hunter was out of earshot.  
  
"Look," she said quietly, "I need you to tell Dumbledore something for me."  
  
"What?" Ron asked.  
  
"Tell him," she lowered her voice to barely even a whisper, "Hunter's father is still in the inner ring, along with Lucius Malfoy."  
  
"You mean, with You-Know-Who?" Ron asked, "How do you know?"  
  
Siren was suddenly very shocked. She looked at Ron, as if regretting what she had just told him.  
  
"Don't worry," Harry replied, "Ron knows who your grandfather is."  
  
Siren sighed, relieved.  
  
"Yeah," Ron replied quickly, and quielty, "I just meant, did Hunter tell you? Or did your grandad tell you?"  
  
"Neither," Siren replied, "I just know. Trust me."  
  
"Why can't you tell Dumbledore yourself?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
"Because," Siren replied, "My grandfather put some sort of curse on me. I'm unable to tell anyone who works for the Ministry any secret informtaion about him or his followers."  
  
Harry wasn't quite sure that he understood, but he agreed nonetheless.  
  
As Harry, Ron, and Siren continued to talk, Siren eventually did help Harry and Ron with their Dark Arts homework. She seemed to be a lot nicer than Harry thought. She slightly reminded him of a mix between Professor Lupin and the Weasley twins. She was very humorous and kind, yet she had a certain royalty or grace about her.  
  
"So, how did Lady Andreala become an enchantress?" Harry eventually asked Siren, "I mean, was she born one?"  
  
"Yes, she was," Siren replied, "In fact, all of the females whom she was of direct lineage were enchantresses. You see, though the book won't tell you this, Lady Andreala was one of the very few who are of a direct line of ancestry relating to the very first witches and wizards that ever existed."  
  
"So, you're a descendant of the very first witches and wizards, too, then?" Harry asked.  
"You're related to the Talmayans??" Ron exclaimed.  
  
Siren smiled and nodded.  
  
"The Talmayans?" Harry asked, "Who're they?"  
  
"The very first witches and wizards who ever existed in this realm," Siren answered.  
  
"Where did they come from?" Harry asked, becoming more interested.  
  
"Nobody really knows," Siren replied, "Most of the wizarding world believes that some Higher Power created them. They were the most powerful breed of wizards that the world has ever known. The wizards were strong and noble, while the witches were beautiful and, well, take a guess."  
  
"Enchanting," Ron said.  
  
"Absolutely," Siren replied, "and all those who are directly related to them have inherited some of their powers. The wizard descendants generally inherited wisdom or power, and the witches inherited the gift of enchantments."  
  
"So," Ron replied, "that means that you're an enchantress, right?"  
  
Siren hesitated to answer at first, but then said, "I will be once I'm older. I'm not exactly powerful enough to use enchantments yet," she looked at Harry and quickly added, "At least, not by my command." She sort of hid her face and blushed a bit. Harry did a little, too. He could tell that the both of them were very uncomfortable with the fact that Siren had unwillingly been giving Harry visions of enchantment. Ron, however, was very interested in the fact that Siren was a descendant of the Talmayans.  
  
"I'll have to write Mum and tll her I know a descendant of The First," he said excitedly, "I mean, if you don't mind.  
  
"Not at all," Siren replied, "but it's nothing big. You two have known a First descendant ever since you came here, right?"  
  
Harry and Ron exchanged confused looks. "What do you mean?" Harry asked her.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore," she answered, "He's of Talmayan descent." After noticing the shocked looks on Harry and Ron's faces (especially Ron's), she continued, "You didn't know?"  
  
"He's never told us," Ro replied, still in shock.  
  
"Have you ever asked?" Siren said, as if it would have been the obvious thing to do.  
  
"Well," Harry continued, "It does explain why he's so powerful."  
  
"And why You-Know-Who is so afraid of him," Ron added, "I wouldn't want to upset an old Talmayan..."  
  
"But, my grandfather's a Talmayan, as well, y'know," Siren responded.  
  
"Oh yeah," Ron replied, "So, who's more powerful? Your grandad or Dumbledore?"  
  
"As of now," Siren replied grimly," definitely my grandfather."  
  
An eerie silence followed this. Siren, however, finally said, "Sorry, but lunch is almost over. I have to get ready for Potions." She said goodbye to Hary and Ron, then walked back to the Slytherin table where her bookbag still layed on the table. For a while, Harry and Ron just stayed silent, adjusting their minds to the fact that they had befriended the grandaughter of Voldemort himself. Ron looked at Harry, and laughed a bit, dumbfounded.  
  
"Wow," was all Harry managed to say.  
  
*****  
  
"Wow," was also all that Hermione managed to say once Ron and Harry had told her all that had happened, as they made their way to Potions. "Well, it explains a lot," she said once they got into the room. They all sat down near the back.  
  
Harry quickly looked around the room to make sure that Siren wasn't around, then replied, "But I still don't trust her."  
  
"Why not?" Hermione asked, "she seems awfully nice."  
  
"Yeah," Ron answered, "So did Professor Quirrel."  
  
The rest of the class piled in. They all waited for five minutes, but Snape still didn't show up.  
  
"Where is the old git?" Ron asked.  
  
"And where's Siren?" Hermione added, looking around them. Five more minutes they waited, and finally Snape showed up, accompanied by Siren.  
  
"He can't have moved back in there," Harry heard Siren saying quietly to Snape.  
  
"We'll talk about it later," Snape replied in his dull voice.  
  
Siren sighed, and Harry noticed that she had a very worried, if not afraid look on her face. She looked around the classroom and noticed that the only seat available was right next to Malfoy. She rolled her eyes, slowly made her way over, then sat down. Malfoy smiled to Crabbe and Goyle.  
  
"Doesn't he get the point that Siren doesn't like him?" Ron whispered to Hermione. Hermione shrugged her shoulders, and returned her attention to Snape as he began to speak.  
  
"I'm going to assume that you all now know how to make a Sasquirende Potion," he said darkly, "and if you dont," (He looked directly at Neville), "then you're going to have many troubles on your first test, which will be this Thursday. And I daresay that you may also find difficulties on your O.W.L. for this class as well."  
  
Neville gulped and tried to stop himself from panicking. Crabbe and Goyle, however (who were sitting right behind Neville), purposely laughed out loud and pointed, which made Neville shrink down in his chair, trying to hide himself from view.  
  
"Regardless," Snape added, walking back and forth infront of th class, "Over the next two days, you will learn to perfect the Ashruda Solution. It is a complex potion, and I am positive that the lot of you will find some way to screw it up."  
  
Some of the students shifted nervously in their chairs.  
  
"The Ashruda Solution," Snape continued coldly, "Will protect one from the Pigmeaa Curse, and it is a key component to the Ashruda Protection. I take it that the most of you haven't a clue what either of these are."  
  
Harry looked at Hermione, hoping for her to tell him what a Pigmeaa curse or Ashruda Protection was. Her face, however, was just as blank as his. "What?" she whispered to him. "So I've been busy looking up things on Andreala..."  
  
"Can anyone tell me, at least, what the Pigmeaa curse does?" Snape asked bitterly. No one in the class raised their hand. Snape rolled his eyes. "Anyone?" he asked again in sheer annoyance. Finally, Siren raised her hand.  
  
Snape looked at her and seemed rather amused. "Siren?" he said.  
  
Siren put her arm down and answered, rather shyly, "The Pigmeaa curse has the potency and power of the Cruciatous Curse, except that the curse can never be released until the victim becomes numb to the pain."  
  
"I'm glad that atleast one of you know what you're talking about," Snape replied, seeming impressed, "Five points for Slytherin. Five more if you can tell these nitwits what the Ashruds Protection is."  
  
Siren laughed a bit at Snape's rudeness to the rest of the class, and continued, "The Ashruda Spell is a spell which creates a barrier etween the castor and any curse which wishes to harm them. It only lasts for 24 hours, but if you create the Ashruda Solution and ingest it, it enables to spell to last 3 times longer. There is also the Ashruda gem which, if you know who to do it, can hold within itself the powers of the Ashruda Spell. If you wear this gem on you somehow, you will be protected from ny curse, save the Three Unforgivable Curses. Together, these three magicks create the Ashruda Protection."  
  
As Siren finished, the room was filled with silence. Then, it happened. The first, last, and only time Harry had ever witnessed it - Snape smiled, accompanied by a slight laugh.  
  
"Make that 10 points," Snape replied.  
  
Siren smiled and looked very proud.  
  
As Snape turned around to sit a his desk, the assignment already written on the board, Ron looked at Malfoy and laughed.  
  
"Hey, Malfoy," Ron whispered to him, "looks like Snape's got a new favourite."  
  
Draco looked at Ron, and if eyes could kill Ron would've died at least 10 times from Draco's glare.  
  
"You could all care to take after Miss Ridge," Snape told the class. "Heaven knows you all could stand to raise your marks in this class."  
  
Malfoy must have been extremely jealous, because as Snape said all of this, he blurted out, "But Sir!! The only way she knows all of that is becase her grandfather taught it to-"  
  
"Shut up, Malfoy!" Snape hissed, giving Malfoy a very threatening look, even worse than those looks he gave to Harry.  
  
Malfoy's face remained a sneer, but he shut his mouth and looked at Snape with a new found loathing.  
  
"Ha!" Ron whispered quietly to Harry, "Would you look at that? Malfoy's jealous!"  
  
"No kidding," Harry replied with a humorous smile.  
  
"Man," Ron added, "Did you hear Siren, though? How did she know all of that? She's got to be the smartest student here!"  
  
"I wouldn't say that much," Hermione said quietly, trying to hide her jealousy.  
  
____________________________________________________________________________ __  
  
Beccita- You best be giving me reviews after every new chapter I upload...lol :)  
  
I hope you all liked it! PLEASE REVIEW *puppy dog eyes*  
  
-Summer :) 


	10. The New Quidditch Teams

The True Heir of Slytherin  
  
Chapter 10 : "The New Quidditch Teams"  
  
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_____________________________________________________________________  
  
"Vow," Krum said as he and Harry made their way to the quidditch pitch. It was their first practice with their new player. Harry had told Krum how intelligent Siren had been in Potions.  
  
"I never knew that she knew so much," Krum added.  
  
"You mean, Durmstrang didn't have any, like, advanced classes or anything?" Harry asked him.  
  
"Not that I know of," Krum replied. "So var, Hogvarts is just the same as Durmstrang."  
  
"I wonder how she knows so much, then," Harry said. "I wouldn't be so suprised but, even Hermione didn't know the answer."  
  
The two of them made their way to the quidditch pitch, where they met the rest of the Gryffindor team, who were all chatting excitedly. Harry, however, was slightly nervous. This was his first time ever being a captain to the team. He had been thinking of some drills that the team could do for practice, but other than that, he really had no clue what he was doing. 'Why couldn't they have made Krum captain?' he thought to himself. His trail of thoughts were disrupted by the outburst of giggles coming from the stands. Harry looked over to see a bunch of 6th year Hufflepuff girls watching them.  
  
"Ah," said Fred, noticing them as well, "Krum's fan club, I see."  
  
"Fan club?" Krum asked nervously, looking at the bunch of girls, who giggled even more. One of them ever waved, while another yelled out, "We love you Viktor!"  
  
Krum waved back with an odd look on his face. "I vas hoping that there vouldn't be any obsessive girls here like there vere at Durmstrang," he said sadly.  
  
"Don't worry, Vik," said George, "Fred and I will get rid of them."  
  
Fred and George got on their brooms and soared over towards the girls. The girls screamed and began to flee as the Weasley twins dove down upon them ("What are you, Hufflepuff spies? Get lost!"). Soon the girls were gone, and Krum was glad, for he didn't much like the attention as Harry seemed to notice.  
  
And so, the team began to practice, running many drills, and going over different game tactics which Harry had devised. As it appeared, the team was exceptionally good, and Krum was an even better keeper than Wood had ever been. Krum even gave Harry some tips on how to outchase the opposing seeker.  
  
"The key is," he told Harry, "that you must always keep moving. Try to make them follow you. Vronski Feint vill trick them once, but it vill not vork more than once. That is vhy you must vait until you see the snitch, then perform the vronski feint. If all goes vell, they vill follow you, crash into the ground, and leave you to claim the snitch on your vay up, understand?"  
  
Harry nodded his head, though he wasn't sure if he would want to risk losing the snitch by trying to fool the other seeker.  
  
Soon, the practice session was over. They looked better than ever, and Harry was sure that they would win the Quidditch Cup again. The team all gathered in the changerooms, got dressed, and walked back towards the castle.  
  
"Oh lovely," Katie Belle said sarcastically as they all made their way to the Main Entrance. The entire Slytherin quidditch team was on their way out of the castle, obviously to practice on the pitch. Malfoy was leading the pack, followed closely by Hunter and Siren.  
  
"Oh look," Malfoy laughed, "if it isn't the drama club, fresh from rehearsal."  
  
"Shut up Malfoy," Angelina Johnson snapped.  
  
"Ooh, a feisty one," Malfoy laughed, "can't wait to see that cute little face of yours once we win the quidditch cup."  
  
"Oh really?!" Fred said, obviously furious. "That's too bad, seeing as how you won't be able to see anything at all once I rip your eyes from their sockets."  
Harry had never seen Fred act so dangerously. He got the impression that fred had a crush on Angelina.  
  
"I'd like to see you try it," Malfoy replied coldly, stepping closer to Fred. "I'm sure you'll be trying to remove your broom from your ass for days."  
  
"Don't be so sure," said George, cracking his knuckles, "it's not like Crabbe and Goyle are here to save you."  
  
Malfoy laughed at this and shook his head, "True. But who needs them when I have the entire Slytherin quidditch team with me? Especially Hunter. I've heard a few nasty tales about his wrath."  
  
Fred and George both looked at Hunter, who seemed to tower over everyone, his dark eyes daring anyone to make a move. Fred looked at Angelina quickly, then back at Hunter. "I could take him," he said darkly.  
  
"Oh please," Siren laughed, who was standing next to Hunter, "you'd be lucky to bruise his foot with your ass."  
  
Harry looked at Siren in shock. She looked very sadistic, and Harry knew that if his team didn't leave soon that they'd be in trouble.  
  
"Siren," Krum said angrilly, "That vasn't very prudent."  
  
"She's only stating the truth, Viktor," Hunter said coldly, giving Krum as look of death, as well as to the other Gryffindors.  
  
"Well," said Malfoy, obviously enjoying the tense atmosphere, "if that's all, we should really be going."  
  
"Yeah," Hunter added, "Your lot should be leaving as well, I think."  
  
Siren grabbed onto Hunter's hand and held it. She looked at the Weasley twins maliciously and added, "Hunter's right. It'd be a shame if your team stayed around. It would only kill your spirits to see what you'll be up against this year."  
  
The rest of the Slytherin team laughed, then walked past the Gryffindor team, purposely knocking into them aside as they did so.  
  
"And here you said the girl was nice," Alicia Spinnet said to Harry, her eyes staring bitterly at Siren.  
  
"I know," Harry replied, watching the Slytherin team walk away laughing, "I thought she was, too, until now."  
  
"Me too," Krum added, looking at the backs of Hunter and Siren with disgust, "Vot's gotten into them?  
  
"Slytherin pride," George replied, walking up the steps leading to the entrance. The rest of the team followed suit, save Krum and Harry, who stood still for awhile in shock. Only when they could no longer see the Slytherin team off in the distance did they turn around to leave.  
  
*****  
  
That night, Harry went to bed early. He didn't want to think about what happened after quidditch practice. All he really wanted to do was to isolate himself within his four-poster bed and go to sleep. As Harry fell asleep, he once again heard singing. As he fell deeper and deeper into his dreams, all he could see was the silhouette of two people embracing. However, the singing that he heard was very sad. Even though it's verse wasn't English, Harry could understand each and every word.  
  
'When lost in the clouds, I found you.  
  
From your love, I understand the darkness.  
  
The stars shine amidst a sea of blue,  
  
But now you are gone, and I am defenseless.  
  
My heart remains void, and cold as stone,  
  
The fire within me controls my mind.  
  
Hatred seeps through my pores, right to the bone.  
  
Blood has been shed, and happiness I find.'  
  
The song seemed to repeat itself over and over again. Harry could feel himself being pulled towards the two silhouettes. before Harry could even call out, one of the figures grabbed him. it was a man; tall, dark, and cold.  
  
"Back again, are you?" it said in a deep voice.  
  
Harry looked up at the man, only to see Tom Riddle. The figure was of Voldemort in his youth. He looked slightly older than the Tom Riddle Harry had met in his second year. This Tom looked as though he was about 25 years old or so.  
  
"You!" Harry yelled, trying to free himself of Tom's grasp.  
  
Tom began to laugh, his eyes slowly becoming even more snake-like.  
  
"Put him down, Tom," said a gentle voice. The other figure that Harry had seen was a woman about the same age as Tom seemed to be. As Harry looked at the woman, he saw a remarkable resemblance to Siren. In fact, this woman was the spitting image of Siren, with only a few minor differences : this woman had blond hair, blue eyes, and a few freckles on her cheeks.  
  
"Do you not know who he is, Guinivere?" Tom said to the woman.  
  
"I know that he will one day wear the Yfel," Guinivere replied.  
  
"Him?" Voldemort asked, looking at Harry suspiciously.  
  
"He will change your life in ways that you do not yet expect," Guinivere replied. She looked at Harry, and it seemed to him that her eyes could penetrate his soul, reading all that he bore with it. It was then that Tom let go of Harry. He seemed to conjur up a ball of fire within his hands. Harry began to run, thinking that the flame would be aimed at him. However, Tom aimed it at Guinivere. Her entire body was set ablaze. She began to scream, and eventually fell to the floor, still and silent. She was dead, and her body continued to burn to ashes.  
Harry stood straight up in his bed as he awoke from the nightmare. He silently went back to sleep, and when morning came, he recalled nothing of the dream.  
  
*****  
  
Harry awoke to the sound of laughter coming from within his dorm room. He put his glasses on as he sat up, and slowly pulled back the curtains on his bed. "What the?" he muttered tiredly to himself.  
  
Ron, Seamus, and the twins were all laughing non-stop at what was infront of them. Harry adjusted his body to see what it was. It was Crookshanks. The boys had kidnapped him and dyed his fur the colours of the rainbow. Crookshanks, however, didn't seem to notice and continued to purr, curled up in a ball.  
  
Harry shook his head and got out of bed. He said good morning to the boys, then headed for the common-room. He got downstairs to see Hermione and Krum on the couch, Krum's arm around her. Krum looked up at Harry and waved with his free hand.  
  
"Good news," he said to Harry, "Professor McGonagall just stopped by. She said that our first game is next Friday."  
  
"Against Hufflepuff?' Harry assumed, "This oughta be interesting."  
  
"Actually," Hermione interupted, "It's against Slytherin. They made some changes to the schedule at the last minute, I guess."  
  
"Oh," Harry sighed, "great."  
  
Hermione smiled glumly. "Cheer up," she said, "you guys will do great! I'm sure you'll win."  
  
"If ve don't get killed by hunter and Siren," Krum added.  
  
An uncomfortable silence fell over the three after this. Hermione, however, finally broke the ice.  
  
"So, are we still going to Hogsmeade today?" she asked, "Hagrid said that he'd come, too."  
  
"I guess so," Harry replied, "who's all coming?"  
  
"Just me, you, Viktor, Ron, and Hagrid," Hemione replied, "Speaking of Ron - where is he? And have you seen Crookshanks at all?"  
  
Harry decided not to say anything, but he simply pointed up to his dorm room.  
  
Hermione then sat up and went upstairs to find Ron and her cat. Harry couldn't help but laugh when he heard her screaming at Ron.  
  
*****  
  
Later on the day, Ron, Hermione, Harry, and Krum all made their way to Hagrid's. When they got there, Harry noticed that Hagrid was already outside in his backyard, tending to his garden.  
  
"Hagrid!" Harry shouted, and Hagrid looked up and waved.  
  
"Alrigh, you four?" he called back. "I'll on'y be another minute er two. Just got ter finish up planting these Sential shrubs."  
  
"What're Sential shrubs?" Ron called back.  
  
"Well, come'n have a look," Hagrid replied, motioning them to go over to the garden. The four of them made their way to the back of Hagrid's property and stood back in awe. Hermione gasped excitedly and ran over next to Hagrid.  
  
"Oh, Hagrid," she said, her eyes on the garden, "They're absolutely beautiful!"  
  
The Sential shrubs didn't look like shrubs at all, rather they were beautiful flowers with very long, thin stems about two feet high. The flower itself had red petals with sheer, almost see-through white petals over them. From it's centre sprung out golden whiskers with pale blue balls on their ends. The plants' stems weren't green, but a very shimmery beige. It's leaves looked as though they, too, were made of gold. The plants all shimmered in the light, and seemed to have a certain glow about them.  
  
"Yeah," Hagrid said, "They are lovely, ain't they? Professor Sprout recommended 'em"  
  
"But they don't look much like shrubs," Ron said, "They look full grown to me."  
  
Hagrid simply laughed and replied, "Then you obviously ne'er seen a Sential flower before." He grabbed one of the shrubs by it's stem and pulled it out of the ground. It had no roots, but rather a large bulb attached to it's bottom. The bulb was white, and it almost looked as though it had golden veins stretching across it.  
  
"Once they get older they'll turn silver," Hagrid said, "Silver and gold, they'll be. Really lovely then, and tall."  
  
Hagrid put the one shrub back into the ground and stood up. "Well then," he said, brushing the dirt off of his hands, "are you ready?"  
  
The five of them made their way into Hogsmeade. Hermione talked to Hagrid about the sentials the entire way. He told her he would give her one once they were fully grown, though she would have to wait until May for them to be at their best. Once they got onto the main road, Hary spotted Viktor's female fan club, not too far off, pointing and giggling at the five of them. Viktor must have spotted them, too, because he turned slightly pink and shook his head in confusion.  
Harry could see the three Broomsticks up ahead, and he couldn't shake the craving for a butterbeer.  
  
"Anyone up for a butterbeer?" he asked everyone.  
  
"Wouldn't mind a mulled mead, meself," said Hagrid, looking over towards the three broomsticks as well.  
  
"Could we stop at Zonko's first?" asked Ron, "I need to pick up some stuff for Fred and George."  
  
"What kind of stuff?" asked Hermione, looking at Ron sternly.  
  
"An exploding spoon," Ron replied, as though it were nothing, "Fred wants to put it at Malfoy's spot at the Slytherin table sometime this week. Something about payback for insulting Angelina, I think. I don't even know what he's talking about, really. And they wanted me to give this letter to the owner," he held up the letter he had been holding in his hand. "Y'know, Harry, I'm not sure if giving them you're Triwizard money was the best thing to do. They keep on making deals with joke shop owners. Soon it'll be impossible to live a second in my house without having something blown up or making loud noises."  
  
"Tell ya what," said Hagrid, still staring off towards the three broomsticks, "Why don't you three go ter Zonko's, and me an' Harry will wait fer ya at the three broomsticks."  
  
Ron looked at Hermione oddly. He was about to ask why, but before he could, Hermione nodded and said, "Sure. We'll be there in a bit." Hagrid waved goodbye to them, and he and Harry left for The three broomsticks.  
  
"Vhy don't they vant to come vith us?" asked Krum as he watched them walk away.  
  
"Beats me," said Ron, turning towards Zonko's. "But I sense some conspiring going on that Hagrid doesn't want us to know about."  
  
"Not necessarily," Hermione replied, still watching Harry and Hagrid walk away, "think about it. Hagrid's barely talked to Harry since school started. He probably just wants to talk about, you know...the Dursleys."  
  
Ron went still and silent. So did Krum.  
  
"Vot exactly happened vith them?" Krum finally asked in a quieter voice, "I mean, I know vot happened, but - how did it happen?"  
  
"You-know-who killed them," Ron said, "Nobody really knows how. They think that someone else might have helped him."  
  
Hermione gave Ron a stern look, and Ron shut his mouth immediately, knowing that he wasn't supposed to mention any details.  
  
"The Ministry is still looking into it," Hermione said glumly, taking hold of Krum's hand. Krum nodded, and together they walked to Zonko's, with Ron walking behind them, eyeing Krum with a look of jealousy.  
  
***  
  
"How're ye doin, Harry?" was the first thing that Hagrid asked as they sat down to a table at The Three Broomsticks.  
  
"Better, I suppose," Harry replied, his thoughts falling back to the Dursleys.  
  
"School goin alrigh?" he asked, pulling his chair in closer to the table.  
  
Before Harry could answer, Madam Rosmerta walked up to the table, chomping on a wad of gum.  
  
"What can I get you two today?" she asked with a friendly smile.  
  
"I'll have a butterbeer," Harry answered dully.  
  
"The usual fer me, thanks," said Hagrid.  
  
Madam Rosmerta walked away and Hagrid turned his attention back to Harry.  
  
"School's ok, I guess," Harry replied. "Stressful."  
  
"When ain't it?" Hagrid replied with a luagh, "And how's quidditch?"  
  
"I knew they were going to die, Hagrid," Harry blurted out, changing the topic suddenly back to the Dursleys. He knew that Hagrid was trying not to touch the subject regarding their death, but Harry needed to talk to someone about it. He hadn't really talked to anyone about it in detail, and he had to sooner or later.  
  
"What's that?" Hagrid asked, shocked, "How'd ye know?"  
  
"I don't know," Harry answered, sighing deeply, "But before Sirius and I left Privet Drive - I just had the feeling that something bad would happen."  
  
Before Harry could say anything else, Professor McGonagall walked up to the table.  
  
"Harry," I was hoping I'd find you here," she said with an exhausted look on her face.  
  
"Hello professor," said Hagrid, looking up at her.  
  
"Yes, hello Hagrid," she replied curtly. "Mind if I have a seat?"  
  
"Go right ahead, Professor," Hagrid replied, standing up and pulling out a chair for her. She sat down and looked at Harry.  
  
"Now, Harry," she said in a more serious tone, "I've been meaning to talk to you about the quidditch team. Things are going well with Krum, I assume?"  
  
"Yes, professor," Harry replied, "the team's doing great."  
  
"Good, good," McGonagall said, trying to smile, "but Im a bit worried about the new Slytherin team."  
  
Harry quite agreed with her. He wasn't too keen on the idea of having Hunter as an opposing beater, either. "Me too," he replied.  
  
At that moment, Madam Rosmerta returned with the drinks.  
  
"Hello, Minerva," she said kindly, "Can I get you anything?"  
  
"No, I'm fine, thank you," McGonagall replied.  
  
Madam Rosmerta nodded and walked back behind the bar.  
  
"You see, Potter," McGonagall continued, "Professor Snape spoke with me last night, and it appears that Hunter Nott and Siren Ridge are new beaters. Now, professor Snape was so generous as to inform me that Hunter had been a beater for the Durmstrang regional team for the past 6 years, which means that he is more experienced than anyone on our team, save Krum, of course."  
  
"Oh," Harry sighed, taking a sip of butterbeer, "great."  
  
"And Siren, Professor Snape tells me," she continued, "has better speed, agility, strength, and aim than any beater he has ever seen before, except of course, for international teams."  
  
"Really?" Harry asked, giving an uneasy laugh.  
  
"Nah, Harry's gonn' beat them both, you'll see," Hagrid smiled, patting Harry on the back. "They're not as bad as dragons, are they? An' Harry's gotten past one a those before, ain't that right, Harry?"  
  
"Yes, I know," McGonagall replied, "but I just wanted to make sure that the Gryffindor team will be prepared once it comes time to play them."  
  
"We will be, professor," Harry replied. Even he had trouble believing that, though. Time went by, and still, Ron, Hermione, and Krum hadn't shown up. Harry was stuck talking to McGonagall about quidditch, and how well the Slytherin team had gotten.  
  
"Just try not to agitate them," she told him, "or they might forget about the game and focus on intentionally trying to hurt you-"  
  
"Well," said Hagrid, taking his last sip of mead, "I'll be payin fer this now." He got up and walked towards the counter to pay for his drink. Harry wished that he could have left, too.  
  
"Harry," said McGonagall, in a quieter voice, "Before Hagrid comes back, there's something I need to tell you."  
  
Harry looked at her with curved eyebrows. "What is it?" he asked.  
  
"Harry," McGonagall replied, sighing, "I know that you know who and what Siren is. Keep in mind that she has a fiery temper, like her grandfather."  
  
Harry shuddered at the thought of Voldemort. He got a weird deja vu feeling as bits of his dream from the previous night started to come back to him.  
  
"Just remember that, alright Harry?" McGonagall continued, "If she does something that upsets you, don't try to get back at her, understand? Leave her well alone. The last thing the world needs is another battle to heat up between the Heirs."  
  
"You knew that I'm the Gryffindor heir?" Harry asked.  
  
"Of course I did," McGonagall replied, "I also knew that about your father. But, back to my point, it isn't wise to anger the spawn of a Death Eater, no matter how nice they may seem."  
  
It was then that Harry remembered what Siren had asked him to do. She wanted him to tell Dumbledore that Hunter's dad was a death eater, and that he and Lucius Malfoy were still in Voldemort's inner circle.  
  
"Er, professor?" Harry said, "Speaking of Siren - there's something I have to tell you."  
  
McGonagall looked at Harry intensely. She almost looked worried. "What is it?" she asked. "Did Siren do something to you?"  
  
"No," Harry replied. He lowered his voice and continued, "but she wanted me to tell Professor Dumbledore something. Do you think that you could tell him for me?"  
  
"Of course," McGonagall replied, looking around to see if anyone else was watching, "What is it, Potter?"  
  
"Well," Harry replied, "Voldemort put some sort of curse on Siren. She's unable to tell anyone who works for the Ministry anything about her grandfather."  
  
Harry lowered his voice even more, and added, "She wanted Professor Dumbledore to know that Lucius Malfoy and Hunter's father are both in Voldemort's inner circle."  
  
"What?" McGonagall gasped, "But how does she know? She says she hasn't spoken with her grandfather all summer-"  
  
"I asked the same thing," Harry replied glumly, "she just told me to trust her about it."  
  
McGonagall sat back in her chair and looked desperately into space, obviously distraught about what Harry had just told her..  
  
"So the worst has indeed happened," she said, as though to herself, "And he knows."  
  
"Who knows what?" Harry asked, sitting up a bit.  
  
McGonagall sighed and cast her eyes down, and then to Harry. "I fear that Professor Snape may be in danger," she replied.  
  
"From what?" Harry asked.  
  
"I cannot tell you until I'm completely sure," she answered, getting up to leave. As she did so, Hagrid returned to the table.  
  
"Leaving so soon, professor?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, I'm afraid so," McGonagall replied, "Something very important's just come up. Have a nice day, you two."  
  
"An' you, professor," Hagrid replied in a kind of way which didn't quite hide his curiosity.  
  
"Well that was weird," Hagrid said to Harry after Mcgonagall had left.  
  
Before harry could say anything, Hermione, Ron, and Krum all entered the pub. They spotted Harry and Hagrid and made their way towards them.  
  
"Harry, you won't believe what they have at Zonko's," Ron said as the three of them sat down to the table. As there weren't enough chairs, Krum took a chair from another table and pulled it up to their table, between Hermione and Hagrid.  
  
"What?" Harry asked Ron, trying to act excited.  
  
"It's disgusting, really," Hermione said in a dim tone of voice.  
  
"Oh shut-up," Ron replied nonchalantly, "It was cool."  
  
He shifted his body to face Harry. "Harry," he said, "They have these tiny little cockroaches that have self-detonators planted on them. You could sneak one into someone's school bag, and their homework would be covered in bug guts."  
  
Harry couldn't help but laugh at the amusement on Ron's face. "I don't understand why it's so funny," Hermione said to Ron, "It's obviously one of those things that only you would like."  
  
"Oh really?" Ron asked cooly, "Viktor seemed to be pretty entertained when we saw that really fat one blow up in front of Lavender and Parvati."  
  
Hermione looked like she was about to argue, but she was interrupted by Madam Rosmerta.  
  
"Can I get you three anything?" she asked happily.  
  
"Yeah, I'll have a butterbeer," Ron answered.  
  
"Me too," said Hermione.  
  
"I'll haff one, too," said Krum.  
  
Madam Rosmerta gave Krum a double-look before she gasped. "Are you Viktor Krum?" she asked, in awe.  
  
"Yes," Krum replied, not seeming uncomfortable at all. Harry figured that Krum must have been used to getting noticed like this in public places.  
  
"Oh dear," Madam Rosmerta replied, putting one hand on her hip, "I absolutely adore you. Y'know, I saw you play against Yugoslavia in the World Cup last year, and I must say, you are a remarkable seeker."  
  
"Thank you," Krum replied, smiling in what looked like a flirtatious manner.  
  
The two of them continued to talk for quite some time, and Madam Rosmerta ended up getting Krum to sign the midriff of her shirt. Krum didn't seem to oppose to this at all. Harry wasn't sure whether or not Hermione noticed Krum's attraction to Madam Rosmerta, but he knew that Ron did because he rolled his eyes at Krum several times.  
  
Eventually, Madam Rosmerta had to tend to another customer, and left their table, only to return minutes later with three butterbeers. She didn't stay to chat this time.  
  
As they all started to talk about what else was in Zonko's, Harry looked out the window of The Three Broomsticks, only to see Remus Lupin standing outside in the middle of the main street. He was keeping a close eye on someone; who it was, Harry wasn't sure.  
  
"Is that Lupin?" Harry asked aloud, pointing out the window.  
  
"So this is where he's staying," said Ron, "I was wondering where he went."  
  
"Ah, he's prolly just keepin a watch on the kids in Hogsmeade," Hagrid added.  
  
"Why would he be doing that?" asked Hermione.  
  
"Oh, right," Hagrid replied uneasily, "Ye weren't supposed ter know that." He sighed deeply. "Oh well, ye would've found out sooner or later."  
  
"Found out vot?" asked krum.  
  
"That Remus, there, has bin' hired ter keep a close watch on things in Hogsmeade. Y'know, ter make sure that no dark wizards are hanging around or anything."  
  
"Who hired him?" Harry asked.  
  
"Dumbledore, of course," Hagrid answered.  
  
"Hey," said Ron, looked out the window again, "Where'd he go?"  
  
Harry looked back out the window as well. Lupin was nowhere to be seen.  
  
*****  
  
Eventually, the five of them had to leave. Harry and Ron walked Hagrid back to his place, while Hermione and Krum took the scenic route back to the castle. After Harry and Ron dropped off Hagrid they took their time on walking towards the castle.  
  
"Could you believe that creep?" Ron finally said, "flirting with Madam Rosmerta right in front of Hermione! And he didn't even have a sorry bit of shame afterwards."  
  
"Maybe he was just being nice," Harry replied, trying hard not to accuse Krum as well.  
  
"Well," Ron continued, giving a slight guffaw, "I've never seen a guy stare at a woman's chest so much while just trying to be nice."  
  
Harry agreed with Ron on that matter, and decided to say nothing more.  
  
***  
  
When night came around, Harry went straight to bed. He had, for some reason or another, had an exhausting day. He just wanted to lay in his four- poster bed and fall asleep.  
  
When he got into his dorm room, he had to duck from the owl that nearly flew into him.  
  
"What on earth?" he said, being shocked by the creature's sudden appearance.  
  
The owl dropped a letter at Harry's feet, then flew out the window of the room.  
  
"Couldn't wait until morning's post, could you?" Harry sighed. He bent down and picked up the letter. It was from Sirius.  
  
~~~~~  
  
Dear harry,  
  
How is school going? Is everything alright? Well, I thought I'd let you know that the Ministry of Magic has officially made me an Auror. I'm not working full-time, though, so hopefully it won't be too dangerous.  
  
Dumbledore wrote me recently. He told me that your first quidditch game of the season is coming up, and he's invited me to come see it. I accepted the invitation. I look forward to seeing you there!  
  
Love, Sirius  
  
~~~~~  
  
Harry smiled. There was something reassuring about the fact that Sirius would be there soon. Harry folded the letter and put it away. He would write back in the morning. It was then that harry heard a noise from outside.  
  
Harry walked to the window and looked out. He could see two people arguing outside of the castle walls. Looking a little more carefully, Harry recognized the two as Siren and Professor Winston, the new DADA teacher. They seemed to be in a fiery argument about something.  
  
"Don't lie to me, you foolish man!" he could hear Siren yell at the professor, "I know that you've discovered the truth!"  
  
Professor Winston was trying to get away from her, but as he did, Siren grabbed him by his neck and pushed him against the wall. Winston tried to free himself, but Siren's grip was too strong. She was strangling him, and he couldn't stop her.  
  
After a few minutes, Winston's body stopped moving, and Siren let go of him. His body collapsed to the ground, still and silent. Siren walked away and out of Harry's view.  
  
Harry tried to comprehend what has just happened. He looked down at Winston's body, and finally had to face the reality of the situation. Winston was dead. Siren had just killed him.  
  
_____________________________________________________________________  
  
Hope ya liked it! Please review :) Even negative comments would be appreciated somehow...though they might make me break down and cry...  
  
-Summer ;) 


	11. The Game of Truth

Gem: LOL! Aww thanks, that means so much to me :) I hope you'll like the next chap I upload. I kinda forgot about this story for a while...lol. I started writing it when I first joined HP4eva, which was just before the first HP movie came out...I think I got up to like 13 chapters, then forgot about it for a few months. I'm currently writing the 16th chapter, but I still have to type up chapters 14 and 15 before I can upload them. 12 should be up later today :)  
  
Keebler-elmo: there's gonna be some action in this one, lol. The story kinda gets more exciting after Winston's death, so I hope yo like it :)  
  
HAHAHA the funniest thing! When I was editing this chapter, I realized that I had made one of Snape's lines a complete typo...he was supposed to say, "This shan't take long," but instead I made him say, "Shit doesn't fake it long." LOL! Man I must have been tired when I re-typed this...  
  
____________________________________________________________________________ __  
  
Chapter 11: "The Game of Truth"  
  
Harry ran down o the Gryffindor common room. He spotted Ron and Hermione sitting with Seamus and Krum. He ran over to them, his heart beating quickly.  
"Ron, I have to show you something," he said once he reached them. He tried to sound as calm as possible. He didn't want the whole common room to know about what had just happened.  
  
"What is it?" Ron asked, eager to see what Harry had to show him.  
  
"It's important," Harry replied. "Come on."  
  
Ron curved his eyebrows in curiosity. "Alright," he said, standing up to go with Harry.  
  
Harry led Ron upstair to their dorm room.  
  
"Harry, what's wrong?" Ron asked him once they got into the dorm room, "You look a little shaken.:  
  
"Come look out the window," Harry said, taking Ron by the arm and pulling him towards the window. "Look," Harry said, pointing out thr window. But as they both stared outside, they saw something quite different than what Harry had intended to show Ron. Harry thought that Professor Winston's body would still be there, but it wasn't. Instead, Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape stood in the exact spot where Siren had killed Winston. A few aurors, including Lupin, stood a few feet away from them. They appeared to be putting Winston's dead body onto a stretcher.  
  
"Bloody hell," Ron gasped. "What happened?"  
  
Harry watched Lupin cover Winston's body with a blanket. Lupin's face had a solemnly shocked look on it, as though looking at Winston's dead face caused him a great amount of inner turmoil.  
  
"Siren killed him," Harry said quietly. "What?" Ron exclaimed. "Did you see her?" "Yeah," Harry replied. "She said something to him... I forget what, but she looked really angry." Harry turned away from the window and leaned back against the windowsill. Ron followed suit and turned away from the scene as well.  
  
"Ron, we have to tell someone," Harry said, "and soon."  
  
"Well, we can't rght now," Ron replied, looking at the floor, "the teachers down there are all busy. Maybe we should give them some time. We'll have to wait till the morning."  
  
Harry sighed and nodded his head in agreement,  
  
***  
  
Harry didn't get very much sleep that night. And when he did manage to sleep a little, scenes from the horrific night filled his head. Needless to say, he was relieved when morning finally came around. He was very nervous when the time finally came to tell Dumbldore. He and Ron woke up an hour before the quidditch game started so that they'd have enough time to inform the staff of what Siren had done.  
  
"Should we wake Hermione?" Harry asked as they both crept down the stairs to the common room, "I mean, I know we're not allowed in the girls' dorms, but-"  
  
"She's right there," Ron interupted. Harry could see Ron's face turn into a scowl as they reached the bottom of the stairs. There on the couch before them, Hermione was fast asleep, cuddled up closely next to Krum, who had his arms around her, also sleeping soundly.  
  
"Never mind then," Harry quickly added, sensing the uncomfortable air around him, "We'll just go without her."  
  
Ron gave Krum one last wicked glare before they turned to leave though the common room door.  
  
"Should we go straight to his office?" Ron finally asked as he and Harry made their way through the castle halls, "or to the staff room?"  
  
"His office," Harry replied, "For all we know, Siren could be in the staff-"  
  
Harry and Ron both stopped abruptly as they turned a corner. There was Siren, and she was talking to Snape. Harry pulled Ron back behind the corner before Siren and Snape saw them. They were still close enough to hear what Snape and Siren were talking about.  
  
"How did it go last night?" Snape asked her. Harry tried to listen a little better.  
  
"Things went according to plan," Siren replied, "he's dead."  
  
"Your grandfather should be happy," Snape said dully.  
  
Siren let out what sounded like a sigh of relief. "I'm just gad it's all over now," she added.  
  
"When will you be seeing your mother?" Snape asked her. Harry could hear their footsteps inching closely towards the corner.  
  
"Whenever she feels like coming to see me, I guess," Siren answered, "Doubtfully before the quidditch game, like I had hoped."  
  
"Are you nervous?" Snape asked her.  
  
"Nah," Siren answered, and her voice seemed a bit calmer, "I mean, it's just my mother. It'll be a relief to finally see her again. I mean, I was so worried."  
  
"I can imagine," Snape replied slowly, "but I was referring to today's quidditch game." "Oh," Siren replied. Harry could hear her footsteps stop. Snape's did as well. "A little," she continued, "I'm just nervous about playing against Viktor. Afterall, he does this stuff professionally."  
  
"But it isn't Gryffindor's keeper you have to worry about," Snape replied, and his voice seemed to change to an almost bitter tone, "just keep an eye on Potter. Let Hunter take care of the others."  
  
"I know," Siren replied with a laugh. The two of them began to walk again, getting closer and closer to Harry and Ron.  
  
"Speaking of Hunter," Siren added, "What are we supposed to say about- "  
  
Siren stopped talking as she and Snape turned the corner to see Harry and Ron leaning up against the wall.  
  
"What are you two doing here?" Siren asked. She sounded as though she were uncomfortable around them.  
  
"Not getting into any trouble, I hope," Snape added, staring darkly at Harry.  
  
"No, sir," Ron replied quickly, "we were just looking for Dumbl- I mean, the Headmaster."  
  
"What for, I wonder?" Snape asked, his voice and face expressionless.  
  
"We just need to speak with him," Harry answered, trying not to look Siren in the eye. "Do you know where we could find him?"  
  
"He's indisposed," Siren replied, "At least for the time being."  
  
"What, is he sick or something?" Ron asked, and Harry could tell that he was afraid of being so neat to Siren.  
  
"He's in no mood for visitors," Snape replied, "but I'd be delighted to give him a message for you." Harry could tell that was a lie. Snape didn't look (or sound) delighted at all.  
  
"We'd rather you not," Harry said to him defiantly, "It's our own business right now." Snape's eyes flickered with rage. As he was about to reply, Siren interrupted.  
  
"I'll tell him you were curious," she said, and she looked at them a bit more sternly now. "You two should go back to your common room and prepare for the game," she said in an authoritative voice.  
  
No, Harry thought to himself, We can't. We have to tell someone what you've done!  
  
"When will the Headmaster be available?" Ron asked, rather nervously.  
  
"I don't know," Snape sighed, obviously annoyed and wanting to leave.  
  
Harry was getting desperate. He had to tell Snape the circumstances of why he needed to speak with DUmbledore. If Snape understood, then perhaps he'd bring them both to see Dumbledore. But Harry couldn't say anything. Not in front of Siren.  
  
"Perhaps I could speak with you then, Professor?" Harry said, trying to seem calm and cool. Harry could tell by the look on Snape's face that he wanted nothing less than to talk with Harry. However, as a teacher, Snape know that he had no choice but to help the students with their problems.  
  
Snape took a deep breath, as though trying to contain his anger, and looked at Siren. "This shan't take long," he told her, and he directed Harry to follow him down the hall. Ron, meanwhile, had to stay behind. Feeling very uncomfortable and quite afraid of Siren, he left to go back to the common room.  
  
Siren then leaned up against the wall and patiently awaited Snape's return.  
  
***  
  
"What is it?" Snape finally asked Harry once they had walked out of hearing distance of Siren. Harry could almost feel Snape's hatred for him filling up the space around the two of them.  
  
"There's a reason why I must speak with Professor Dumbledore right away," Harry replid quickly, his voice a bit nervous.  
  
"And what would that reason be?" Snape asked dully, looking straight ahead and not even glancing toward Harry.  
  
Harry looked down at his feet and took a deep breath. "I saw Professor Winston's death last night," he said. Snape stopped walking very abruptly and stared intensly at Harry.  
  
"Did you see who did it?" Snape asked very darkly, and Harry got the impression that this made Snape a little more angry than usual.  
  
"Well," Harry started, but as he was about to answer, he decided not to. He wasn't even sure if he could trust Snape, so he decided to lie. "No," he continued, "but if I could speak wth the Headmaster, I'd be able to describe the person to him."  
  
Harry could immediately tell that Snape knew Harry was hiding something. However, Snape simply nodded slightly with a sneer, and told Harry to follow him to Dumbledore's office. As they walked there, Harry suddenly remembered what he had overheard Snape and Siren talking about only moments before. 'Things went according to plan.' Siren's voice echoed through his head as he remembered the conversation, 'he's dead.' ... 'Your grandfather should be happy.' What on Earth were they talking about? Harry thought to himself. Were they talking about Winston? And now for some reason, Harry had the feeling that Snape knew about Siren killing Winston. Harry reached into his pocket to make sure his wand was still there. He wasn't sure, but he wasn't sure if he could totally trust Snape's loyalties.  
  
They finally reached the stone gargoyle before Dumbledore's office. Harry was shocked as Snape merely looked at the gargoyle and, without even saying a password, it leapt forth and let them through. Harry assumed that it must have been charmed to recognize staff members.  
  
As they went up the winding staircase, Harry could hear two very familiar voices talking. They reached the top of the stairs to see the door of the office already slightly ajar. Snape knocked twice on it, and Dumbledore's voice could be heard telling him to come in. The door opened, and there sat Dumbledore at his desk, and both Sirius and Lupin standing near the window. Snape looked right at Sirius, and Harry could tell that both were trying their best not to say a word.  
  
Before Harry could say anything to Sirius, Dumbledore stood up and looked at both he and Snape. "What is it?" he asked kindly, but Harry could see the lament in his eyes.  
  
"Potter, here, claims to have been witness to last night's events," Snape replied, pulling his eyes off of Sirius.  
  
"What?" Sirius gasped, "You weren't there, were you, Harry?"  
  
"Er, no," Harry replied. "I could see it from my dorm window."  
  
Sirius and Lupin exchanged concerned looks.  
  
"Did you see who did it, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, taking a few steps closer. Harry could see Snape glaring at him from the corner of his eye. "Yeah," Harry replied quietly. He didn't want to say anything more. Not in front of Snape, at least.  
  
Dumbledore seemed to have read his mind, and said, "Everyone here is trustworthy, Harry. You can tell us what you saw."  
  
Harry still wasn't sure if that was true, but he had no choice. He had to tell them. "It was Siren," Harry replied, and he put his head down, trying not to make eye contact with anyone.  
  
"Siren?" Dumbledore asked, obviously shocked at Harry's reply.  
  
"Are you sure that you saw what you think you saw?" Lupin asked him.  
  
"Absolutely," Harry replied. He could still feel Snape's eyes on him, almost as though someone was breathing down the back of his neck.  
  
"It appears that you are greatly mistaken, Potter," Snape replied, his voice almost amused, but nevertheless cold as ice.  
  
"How so?" Harry asked darkly, finally looking up at Snape.  
  
"Harry," Sirius replied, "Siren was nowehere neat Hogwart's last night."  
  
"What?" Harry asked, looking away from Snape's twisted face, "But I know I saw her-"  
  
"I'm afraid he's right," Dumbledore added gently, "Siren was at an Auror Meeting last night, discussing any further plans of attack against her grandfather."  
  
Harry couldn't believe it. He didn't know what to say or think. If Siren didn't kill Winston, then who did? "So who was it that I saw strangling Professor Winston?" Harry asked aloud.  
  
"Perhaps you imagined it," Snape mocked, obviously enjoying watching Harry make a complete fool of himself before the headmaster..  
  
"I don't think so," Lupin replied, shaking his head, "Winston did die due to strangulation. Perhaps he saw who did it and merely misidentified them as being Siren." Snape stared bitterly at Lupin.  
  
"But it even sounded like her..." Harry trailed off.  
  
"What did the person say?" Dumbledore asked, sitting back down at his desk.  
  
"I don't really remember," Harry replied. He felt more like a fool with every passing second. "Something about Professor Winston knowing her secret."  
  
Dumbledore curved his eyebrow at this and sat back in his chair.  
  
"Perhaps this person was trying to frame Siren," Sirius added, "They could have used some form of magic to look like her - Polyjuice potion, maybe?"  
  
"That means that the person must have been around Siren recently," Snape replied, "in order to obtain a part of her."  
  
"And Siren hasn't been away from Hogwarts since school started," Dumbledore replied, "not until last night."  
  
"If they did use the Polyjuice Potion, they'd have had to have been around Hogwarts," Lupin replied.  
  
"It takes a month to be prepared," Snape replied cooly. "School only started a couple of weeks ago. She must have been around this person during the summer."  
"And she sent most of her summer here," Dumbledore replied gently. "When she wasn't in Knockturn Alley preparing things for her class, she was."  
Everyone was silent for a bit, putting the pieced together in their own heads.  
  
"So there's a murderer in Hogwarts?" Harry asked. "There was last night, atleast," Sirius replied, "and some time before that, I'll bet."  
  
"This doesn't make any sense," Harry replied, gathering more bits of information from his memory.  
  
"No?" Snape asked darkly.  
  
Harry looked at him angrily. "No, it doesn't," he snapped back. "I heard what you and Siren were talking about in the hallway! You were talking about things going according to plan... something about someone being dead and how Voldemort would be happy about it! Why should I believe that you weren't talking about the Professor's death?"  
  
Snape lost it. He nearly lunged at Harry, grabbing him by his cloak and pushing him against the wall. "How dare you listen in on my conversations, you idiot boy!" he yelled evilly. Before he could do anymore, both Lupin and Sirius grabbed Snape by the arms and pulled him away from Harry. Lupin tried his best to keep Sirius from hurting Snape.  
  
Dumbledore stood up and looked at Snape very sternly. "Severus, what is the meaning of this?" he asked in displeased tone that Harry had never heard before. "What is Harry talking about?"  
  
Harry was both terrified and victorious. He was finally going to reveal Snape for what he truly was- a death eater.  
  
"I cannot speak of it infront of two aurors," Snape replied, his voice fuming, his eyes still on Harry.  
  
Dumbledore looked at both Lupin and Sirius. "Leave us, then," he said to them, "Only for a moment."  
  
Sirius stared coldly at Snape, daring him to make another move. Lupin left first, hesitantly followed by Sirius.  
  
"Now," Dumbledore said, calming down a bit, but still obviously discontent," tell me what happened, Severus."  
  
Snape finally looked away from Harry and turned to Dumbledore. "After the meeting last night," he replied in a monotone voice, "Siren and I met up at the ministry Headquarters. She was terrified, saying that her mother had been kidnapped. I assumed that it was her grandfather's doing, but it wasn't. It appears that Charles Nott had kidnapped Raven at the beginning of the summer, telling Siren that she had to do whatever he asked of her, or else he would kill Raven."  
  
Harry was utterly confused. He knew that Raven was Siren's mother, and he was only assuming that Charles Nott was Hunter's father- the death eater.  
  
"But what would Charles want with Siren?" Dumbledore asked slowly.  
  
"Power," Snape replied simply. "He's been forcing her to teach him every bit of powerful magic that only the heir of Slytherin would know of. As well, he ordered her to allow Hunter's calling on her, hoping that it would bring their two families closer together, and that someday the Dark Lord would accept he and Hunter as family." He took a deep sigh and then continued, still rather dully, "Siren had been too afraid to tell anyone. She didn't want her mother to die. She finally told me, and together we went to Charles' home. We took him by force to the only person Siren felt she could trust..the only one she felt would know what to do."  
  
"Voldemort," Dumbledore sighed. He paced around the room for a bit. "Go on."  
  
"She stayed their with him while I left to free her mother. But when I returned to the house, her mother had already fled. I can only assume she's still hiding somewhere."  
  
"And what happened to Charles?" Dumbledore asked calmly, as though he already knew the answer.  
  
"From what Siren has told me," Snape replied, "her grandfather killed him after discovering that he had been taking abuse of Siren. Siren apparently left afterwards and returned to Hogwarts only a couple of hours ago."  
  
He then looked back at Harry. "And Siren didn't want anyone to know that she had had dealings with her grandfather," he continued, "which is why I ask that neither of you mention this to anyone."  
  
"It's understandable," Dumbledore replied, "and I shan't say a word to anyone not in this room. You have my word."  
  
Harry was in a state of shock. None of this was making any sense to him right now.  
  
"And do I have your word, Potter?" Snape asked darkly, staring at Harry with a threatening gaze..  
  
Harry nodded his head yes, not being able to find his voice.  
  
"I will have to have a talk with her, however," Dumbledore replied. He turned to Harry, and seemed to look happier. "But on a different note," he continued, changing the subject and smiling, "I believe you have a quiditch game to get ready for, Harry."  
  
*****  
  
The quidditch game was only minutes away. Harry didn't have any time to catch up with Ron and tell him all that had happened. He had to meet up with the Gryffindor team in the locker rooms. He got their as quickly as he could.  
  
"There you are," Katie Bell said as Harry walked in, "we thought you weren't going to show up."  
  
"Sorry," he said, quickly putting on his gear, "I was busy and lost track of time."  
  
"Vell, ve start in 5 minutes," Krum replied, "Ve haff to valk out to the pitch."  
  
Harry grabbed his Firebolt. "Let's go."  
  
*****  
  
"And it's a beautiful day," Lee Jordon's voice echoed throughout the pitch, doing his usual commentary." Is everyone ready for the first quidditch game Hogwarts has seen in over a year?" The crowd erupted into cheers.  
  
"Ready?" Harry asked the team as they were about to fly onto the pitch.  
  
"Ready," they all replied.  
  
They heard Lee's que, and they all flew out onto the pitch. They were met mostly with cheers, but the Slytherins were all booing them loudly.  
  
The Slytherin team was already out. Harry saw Hunter flying near Malfoy. 'He must not know aout his dad,' Harry thought to himself. He also saw Siren fly a bit above Malfoy, her bat secure in her hand. She looked different, Harry noticed, but he didn't know why. She seemed...colder. Maybe she was still upset about last night. She just looked different as far as Harry could tell. He then noticed her eerie resemblance to Andreala. 'Those two could pass for twins,' he thought.  
  
"POSITIONS!" Madam Hooche yelled out. The players on each team got ready. "As always, I want a clean game." she warned them all.  
  
"The game is about to start as Madam Hooche says some last minute words," Lee's voice could be heard above the cheering crowds, "And...the quaffle has been thrown up...and the game starts with Slytherin in possession! Marcus Flint has the quaffle and is being closely guarded by Hunter Nott as the Weasley twins fly by, trying to get a good shot in with a bludger. Alicia Spinnter is closing in on him...she may have a chance to steal- oh no! Siren Ridge hammers a bludger towards Alicia but misses by an inch, leaving Flint in the lead. He's got a shot - he's taking it... oh! Denied! The quaffle is stopped by Gryffindor Keeper Viktor Krum, and Gryffidor are now in possession with Angelina Johnson and Katie Bell taking it to center."  
  
Harry was looking around for the snitch, but it couldn't be seen. He could tell that Malfoy was watching him. He decided to fool Malfoy by flying towards the Gryffindor posts as quickly as he could, which would also take Hunter and Siren's focuses off of the Gryffindor chasers. It worked. Malfoy flew after Harry, as did Siren. However, as he flew closer to Krum, he saw it- the golden snitch had already appeared, and it was right below Krum's feet. Krum winked at Harry, signifying that he had noticed it, too. Harry flew towards it as fast as he could, still far ahead of Malfoy. Siren, however, was right beside him. Without any warning, she grabbed her bat and swung at Harry, hitting him in the stomach. He stopped abruptly, as Malfoy sped past him. Thankfully, the snitch had disappeared.  
  
Madam Hooche's whistle sounded, calling for a penalty against Siren. But Siren didn't stop. She hit Harry again, and this time it hit his chest, knocking the wind out of him.  
  
He hunched over, trying not to fall from his broomstick. The crowd was almost silent as Siren continued to beat him, ignoring Hooche's repetive whistles and shouts.  
  
"What are you doing?!" Harry finally managed to yell at her, flying a bit away from her. Siren didn't reply. She took out her wand and aimed it at Harry.  
  
"What are you doing?!" Harry yelled again, his voice shaking with agony. The pitch was still and silent. The crowd gasped as Siren finally spoke...  
  
She pointed her wand right at Harry, and the words seemed to echo throughout the pitch as she spoke them. "Avada Kedavra." A green light blinded Harry, and he couldn't see a thing as it quickly crept closer to him.  
  
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*Dun dun DUUUNNNNNN* Mwahahahaha! Nehehehe....*folds her hands together and twiddles her fingers* Excellent.  
  
-Summer :P 


	12. The Yfel

Keebler-elmo: LOL yeah it was a mean cliff hanger wasn't it? Meh never fear, there's many more of those to come :P  
  
Once again I apologize beforehand for any jacked up spacing that may occur in this or any future chapters :) _____________________________________________________________________  
  
The True Heir of Slytherin Chapter Twelve: "The Yfel"  
  
"Avada Kedavra."  
Those words echoed through Harry's mind as Siren spoke them. Harry had heard that the last seconds of your life could pass by very slowly, allowing your life to flash before your eyes. He didn't know it was actually true. Everything seemed to move in slow motion. Harry looked at Siren's wand. A green star appeared at its tip, and began to shoot out towards him. In that same fraction of a second, Harry saw his parents. They were in his mind. The image he had seen of them in the Mirror of Erised during his first year at Hogwarts was now flashing before him. He reached out to them, but as he extended his arm, the image disappeared. He was distraught, but it didn't matter. No bother. He knew that he's be seeing them soon enough.  
  
And still in that fraction of a second when the green star shot out from Siren's wand, Harry could see something zooming toward him. It was a black blur as far as Harry could tell. A black blur with a pinch of scarlet buried somewhere within it. As soon as it had zoomed past Harry, Siren was knocked from her broom, her wand falling with her, the green star of the incomplete curse disappearing as Siren let go of her wand.  
  
Nothing moved in slow motion any longer. Things were back to normal speed, and Harry could hear shouts and screams coming from the crowd, mixed with the thunder of a hundred feet scurrying out of their seats, trying to get to safety. Harry looked up to see what that black-scarlet blur had been. It was Krum. He had pushed Siren from her broom only milliseconds after she had said the incantation. Luckily for Harry, Krum had gained that sort of speed playing professional quidditch. He and Harry stared at one another, both in disbelief.  
  
Malfoy slowly flew towards them. Harry could see the stunned look on his face. Malfoy looked down at Siren's body, lying motionless on the ground.  
  
"Is she dead?" Malfoy asked quietly.  
  
Harry looked down as a scatter of staff members rushed towards Siren. He could see Dumbledore looking at her, and Madame Hooch checked for a pulse. Snape, McGonagall, Lupin, Sirius, and Hunter (who had landed to see if Siren was alright) were surrounding her body. Snape was simply staring at her in disbelief.  
  
"Are you alvright?" Krum finally asked Harry, flying a bit closer to him.  
  
"Yeah," Harry murmured. He wanted to fly down, but as he moved his body a bit, he felt a great pain in his chest. He cringed and screwed up his face. "I think something broke when she was hitting me," he added, his voice shaking with pain. Harry then realized that he couldn't move at all, because when he did, his chest began to burn, and an unbearable pain struck him.  
  
"Probably broke a rib," Malfoy said mechanically, still looking down at Siren's body with a ghastly look upon his face.  
  
The other players looked quite the same. Those who weren't on the ground with the teachers were all hovering silently, looking down at Siren's body, all mortified. Krum looked like he wanted to say something comforting, but couldn't. He, instead, flew over next to Harry.  
  
"Do you need help?" he asked Harry.  
  
Harry was still slightly hunched over. "I can't move," he said through gritted teeth. "It hurts too much."  
  
Krum looked around helplessly, trying to figure out what to do. He looked to Malfoy, who was the only other player near them. "Help me guide Harry's broom to the ground," Krum said to him.  
  
Malfoy looked up. "What?" he spat, "I have no reason to help-"  
  
"Just do it!" Krum yelled desperately at him. Malfoy looked hesitant, but he was so confused by the whole situation that he just gave in and helped Krum to lower Harry's broom to the ground.  
  
Harry found that it was easy to stand, but he couldn't move his torso without cringing in sheer agony. Ron and Hermione ran out on to the field.  
  
"HARRY!" Hermione yelled as she and Ron ran towards him. "Goodness, are you okay?!"  
  
Harry was trying not to gasp for air, because each time he inhaled, a sharp pain rose in his chest.  
  
"I think he broke a vrib," Krum answered for him.  
  
Hermione looked around through the crowd of teachers. "Sirius!" she called out, spotting him a few meters away. Sirius saw her standing next to Harry and rushed over. "Harry," he gasped, "Are you alright?"  
  
"He broke a rib, we think," Ron replied, "We have to get him to Madame Pomfrey."  
  
Sirius looked around frustratingly, trying to figure out what to do. "Geez," he sighed, watching a group of first year Ravenclaws trying to push their way out of the crowds of people in the stands. It was chaotic. No one knew exactly what to do. Harry was reminded of the time when he had escaped from Voldemort during the Triwizard Tournament; once the crowds had seen Cedric's dead body, they reacted in quite the same manner as they did now.  
  
"Okay," Sirius finally replied, "we have to get you to the hospital wing."  
  
Harry still had to find out what had become of Siren. "No," he replied, lifting his head to try and get a better view, "I have to see if she's okay first."  
  
Sirius looked at him oddly. "But Harry-"  
  
Sirius' words were cut short as louder screams erupted from the crowds. Sirius turned around and took out his wand, as the other staff members had done. Siren was now standing up. She had a menacingly evil look upon her face. Her eyes were dark grey. Her hands were held out, each with large blue flames upon them.  
  
Harry gawked at her. How did she get those flames to appear without using her wand? He didn't know she as that powerful.  
  
"Siren," Hunter said from behind her, looking very afraid himself, Harry noticed, "Siren, don't do this, not now - you'll get yourself hurt-" "Siren," Krum added, taking some daring steps toward her, "Vot's vrong vith you? Vhy are you doing this? Siren?"  
  
"That's not Siren," Snape said aloud, who was standing the closest to her, and next to Dumbledore as well. "It can't be."  
  
"What do you mean, Severus?" Dumbledore asked calmly, keeping his eyes on Siren.  
  
Snape didn't answer. He continued to look at Siren closely. "Who are you?" he asked her darkly, "Where's Siren?"  
  
Siren looked at Snape and smiled wickedly. "So you are the traitor?" Siren said, but for some reason, she had a thick Russian accent. "My heirs have told me much of you."  
  
"Your heirs?" Snape repeated, unsure of what she meant.  
  
Without warning, Harry fought his way past a bunch of teachers, and came face to face with Siren.  
  
"Get back, you fool!" Snape scolded.  
  
"You're Andreala!" Harry yelled angrily, "I've seen you in my visions!"  
  
"Clever young boy," she replied, "You found out my little secret." She put her arms down and the blue flames disappeared. Her eyes turned grey.  
  
"Where's Siren?" Harry yelled, trying not to let the pain in his chest get to him.  
  
"You know," Andreala replied, ignoring what Harry had said, "your professor Winston found out about my secret, too. But I took care of him. And in time, I shall take care of you as well, young Gryffindor."  
  
And with that, she disappeared.  
  
*****  
  
While the other staff members tried to figure out what had happened, Sirius, along with Ron, Hermione, and Krum, had taken Harry to the hospital wing. Once Madame Pomfrey had repaired Harry's wounds (two broken ribs, some nasty bruises and a severely damaged liver) she told Harry to rest and wouldn't let Ron, Krum, or Hermione see him. But Sirius, being an auror, was allowed to see him in order to further investigate what had happened.  
  
"What happened, Sirius?" Harry asked. "How is Andreala here? I don't understand..."  
  
"Neither do I," Sirius replied, "Voldemort must have used a very powerful resurrection spell to bring her here."  
  
Harry sighed and laid back in his hospital bed. He and Sirius sat in silence for about a minute, both trying to comprehend what had just occurred.  
  
"Do you think Siren's alright?" Harry finally asked, "I mean, she can't be far, right? I saw her right before I went to Dumbledore's office..."  
  
"I don't know," Sirius replied glumly. He sat back in his chair and sighed deeply. "I don't know, Harry."  
  
Harry felt terrible. Not only didn't he know what was going on, but he felt terrible for accusing Siren of killing Professor Winston. He should've known that she never would have done something like that to an innocent person.  
  
"So it was definitely Andreala who killed Winston, then, right?" Harry asked Sirius.  
  
Sirius sighed deeply and nodded his head.  
  
"Did you know him?" Harry asked.  
  
Sirius nodded his head again. "He was about two years below me when I was in school," he replied, 'he was a Gryffindor. Your father knew him pretty well. He was on the quidditch team and everything. I think Remus was pretty close friends with him over the past few years, though. He's been taking Winston's death pretty hard."  
  
Before Sirius could say anymore, the doors to the hospital wing burst open, and in rushed Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape. Professor McGonagall followed them briskly. Snape was carrying someone's limp body in his arms. Harry quickly saw it to be Siren. She was badly beaten, all bruised and bloody, and she was unconscious - or was she dead? Harry couldn't tell.  
  
Madame Pomfrey rushed towards them. "What on Earth? What happened to her?"  
  
"We found her in an abandoned classroom," Dumbledore replied in a very concerned tone. "She looked as though she were beaten and left for dead."  
  
"Quick, bring her here," Madame Pomfrey said as she led Snape toward an empty bed, and Madame Pomfrey waved her wand to a medicine cart, which then quickly rolled towards her.  
  
Sirius looked at Harry, then stood up and walked over to where Siren was. Harry decided to go, too. He walked over and stood just behind Dumbledore, trying to get a good view of Siren, without getting in Madame Pomfrey's way.  
  
"Andreala's work, I'll assume," Sirius said aloud.  
  
"More than likely, yes," McGonagall answered, an obvious amount of fear apparent in her dry voice.  
  
Madame Pomfrey quickly concocted some sort of potion or medicine (Harry couldn't tell what it was, exactly). She put it up to Siren's face. Harry expected her to pour it down Siren's throat, but she didn't. She simply held it below Siren's nose and waited. After about fifteen seconds, Siren's eyes opened wide, and she started to breath very heavily.  
  
"She's in shock," Dumbledore said, keeping his eyes on Siren, and holding her left hand in a comforting way.  
  
"Calm down, child," Madame Pomfrey said gently, "You're safe now."  
  
"She tried to kill me!" Siren gasped, "He wants me dead!"  
  
Dumbledore curved his eyebrows in concern. "Voldemort?" he asked.  
  
"He sends her to kill people," Siren replied in a shaky voice, obviously terrified, "and he sent her after me!"  
  
"You know better than that," Snape said calmly to her, "He can't kill you. He needs you, remember?"  
  
"Then why the hell did her send her after me?" Siren cried.  
  
"To show you that he could," Snape replied, "He knew she wouldn't kill you. He knew we'd find you. He wouldn't dare kill you, especially not now."  
  
"Don't you get it?" Siren snapped, "He wants me dead! And he won't stop until he's done it!"  
  
Madame Pomfrey handed Siren a cup, obviously containing some sort of tonic. "Drink this, dear," she said, "it will calm your nerves." Siren knocked Pomfrey's arm away, sending the cup crashing to the floor. Siren then sat up, trying to get out of the bed. Snape, however, restrained her. "Sit down," he said harshly.  
  
"No!" Siren screamed, trying to fight him off. "No! Let me go! I have to hide! I have to get the Yfel and hide!"  
  
"Forget about the Yfel," Dumbledore said gently, placing a hand on Siren's shoulder. "He already has it." Siren stopped struggling. Tears stained her face now, and she turned her head to look at Dumbledore. "No," she cried, "he can't..."  
  
"He's had it for quite some time now," Snape replied, "Ever since he moved back into Salazar's dark castle."  
  
Siren sighed and curled up into a ball on the bed. "I'm not safe here," she whispered.  
  
"You're safer here than you would be anywhere else," McGonagall said, breaking her temporary silence. Almost as though some previously unknown maternal instincts had taken her over, McGonagall sat on the side of the bed, comfortingly caressing Siren's long, dark hair. "You need to rest for a bit," she said softly, "you'll feel better if you do."  
  
Siren sniffed. "I just want to be alone right now," she said, her voice muffled by the pillow which now covered half of her face.  
  
Dumbledore nodded at the others, and they all left Siren's side.  
  
"Make sure she's healed as quickly as possible," Harry heard Dumbledore say to Madame Pomfrey, "I have a feeling that we'll need her to be at her strongest, very soon."  
  
Everyone - Dumbledore, Snape, and McGonagall - left the wing, and Harry and Sirius returned to Harry's hospital bed. Harry got comfortable in the pillows, and looked over at Siren. He was surprised to see that she was looking right back at him, her eyes as harrowing as her grandfather's. Harry noticed the physical resemblance between Siren and Voldemort the strongest as of now, and it frightened him enough to make him turn his head away.  
  
*****  
  
"How vas Siren?" Krum asked Harry shortly after Harry had been released from the hospital wing.  
  
"Not too good," Harry glumly replied. "Andreala beat her to a bloody pulp. When I saw her first, she had blood all over her front, and the left side of her face was all bashed in-"  
  
"Harry," Hermione scolded quietly, "you needn't be so graphic."  
  
"Are we allowed to see her?" Ron asked.  
  
"No," Harry replied, "I think she's being interrogated by some Ministry workers."  
  
Harry had already told them all the details about what had happened to Siren as they were walking to Potions class. They had arrived in the dungeons now. Krum turned to Hermione, saying, "I'll see you after class." He kissed her on the cheek, and took off up the stairs. Hermione, Ron, and Harry all went into the classroom and sat down at their desks. Hermione and Ron continued to talk to one another, but Harry zoned out, trying to fully comprehend what was going on with Siren, Andreala, and Voldemort. He soon found it impossible, however, considering that there were still many unanswered questions. How did Voldemort bring back Andreala? And what in the world was an Yfel?  
  
Harry watched as the group of Slytherins entered the room, led by Malfoy, of course. Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle took their seats across the aisle from Harry. Harry noticed that Malfoy somehow looked legitimately disturbed, almost confused.  
  
"If you want to have a staring contest, Potter, just say so," Malfoy snickered. It was then that Harry noticed he had been staring at Draco for quite some time now. He didn't reply, but turned his head away in silence. Harry looked around the room. He didn't see Snape anywhere.  
  
"I wonder where the old git's gotten to now," Ron said, also noticing Snape's absence.  
  
The class chattered nonchalantly for about five minutes, until Snape finally entered the room briskly, with a look of hidden devastation on his face.  
  
"Class has been cancelled." He didn't hesitate to announce this right away. "All students are to return to their house common rooms immediately."  
  
"Why?" Malfoy asked aloud.  
  
"Don't ask questions," Snape replied stalely, "just do as you're told."  
  
Ron, Hermione, and Harry all looked at one another with confusion, then gathered their things, stood up, and left for their common room. When they arrived, all of the other Gryffindors were already there, speculating as to what could have happened.  
  
"Maybe Professor Ridge has gone mad again," Harry heard a third year student say. It was then that Harry realized that nobody else at Hogwarts really knew that Andreala had been resurrected.  
  
"Attention all students," a voice rang throughout the school.  
  
"It's McGonagall," Fred Weasley said aloud, "Everyone shut up."  
  
"Prefects," McGonagall continued, "you are to immediately escort your houses to the Great Hall. Headmaster Dumbledore has an important announcement to make." Everyone looked around at everyone else in curious wonder.  
  
Hermione presently took charge. "Everyone follow me," she said, "I'm to escort you all to the Great Hall now."  
  
"Yeah," Ron said after her, "You know, in case we get lost on the way there."  
  
Everyone else laughed except Hermione, who gave Ron a scornful look. She then began to lead everyone through the castle to the Hall. Once they were all there, they took their seats at the Gryffindor table. All of the teachers were seated at the staff table, including Siren, who looked much better than when Harry has last seen her.  
  
The last house to arrive was Ravenclaw, and as they all took their seats, Dumbledore immediately began to speak.  
  
"As you all know," he said, his voice slightly echoing throughout the Hall, "some awful things have happened these past few days. I have gathered you all here to share some very unfortunate news. For reasons I am not yet allowed to discuss with the public, Hogwarts will be closed as of tomorrow, and you will all be sent home."  
  
__________________________________________________  
  
*gasp* Oh no! Nehehehe. I hope you liked it! Please review :}  
  
-Summer :) 


	13. A Harrowing Turn of Events

Keebler-Elmo: Of course I know what I'm doing. It's my fanfic after all :) It'll make sense soon. Don't worry. ____________________________________________________________________________ __  
  
Harry Potter and The True Heir of Slytherin: Chapter Thirteen  
  
"A Harrowing Turn of Events"  
  
The morning after Dumbledore had made the big announcement, the castle was full of sad and confused faces. "It''s because of Siren," everyone was whispering throughout the school. "They''ll probably send her off to Azkaban or something."  
"So much for the Yule Ball," the Hufflepuff prefect was telling her friends. "The staff was just about to announce it, too."  
  
"It''s all Siren''s fault," Harry heard a few younger Gryffindors say as they were packing their things. "We have to go home because she''s gone evil."  
  
It ached Harry to hear everyone saying so many bad thing about Siren. "If they only knew the truth," he said to Ron as he was getting his school things in order.  
  
"So tell them," Ron replied, sitting t the edge of his bed. "Tell them the truth."  
  
"You heard Dumbledore," Harry sighed. "Even he isn''t allowed to say anything about it yet."  
  
Harry's conversation with Hermione was quite different. He, Hermione, and Krum were all packed and were sitting comfortably in the common room.  
  
"Best not say anything about Siren, Harry," Hermione told him. "The last thing you need is to get into trouble with the Ministry of Magic. Besides, it would frighten the other students, I''m sure."  
  
"But is Siren alvright?" Krum asked, his voice hinting a tone of sincere concern.  
  
"She looks it," Harry answered.  
  
"I vant to see her before ve leave," Krum added. Hermione's eyes flared as she tried to hide her jealousy. Harry didn't blame her, though. Krum had been talking a lot about Siren ever since the quidditch game.  
  
"Maybe we shouldn't see her just yet," Hermione said to him, trying to remain calm. "I mean .. who knows what's become of her. Harry said that she was quite hysterical in the hospital wing-"  
  
"After vot happened, I don't blame her," Krum replied rather defensively. "She needs some friends vright now, I think."  
  
Harry had to admit that Krum was right.  
  
"I'll be right back," Harry said, standing up to leave the common room.  
  
"Where are you going?" Hermione called after him.  
  
"To find Sirius," Harry lied. He was actually going to find Siren, but he didn't want Hermione of Krum to know because they would want to go with him. He had to see her alone, though. He had so many questions for her, most of which he wasn't even sure if she knew the answers to. He needed to find out more about Andreala. Hopefully Siren would tell him what he needed to know to stay safe.  
  
Harry left the common room and made his way for the Dark Arts room, hoping Siren would be there. He finally got there, and noticed that the door was slightly open. Harry peaked in and saw Siren sitting at the front desk, reading a letter. She was wearing robes of shimmery white, lined with silver silk down the center. Beneath she wore a long white dress. Her hair was all let down and wavy. All that was missing was a halo, Harry thought.  
  
Just as Harry was about to enter the room, he heard someone coming. Not wanting to be seen where he wasn't supposed to be, Harry hid behind a statue of armor and waited quietly. He saw Snape walking very slowly towards Siren's classroom. He looked thin and pale, Harry noticed, just like the day when he, Ron, and Hermione had seen him in Knockturn Alley before school had started. Snape was carrying a letter, already opened. He stopped outside of Siren's classroom, looking rather hesitant. Harry wondered as to why Snape was acting so different Snape had always been swift and hasty, but now, for some reason, he was slow and seemed afraid. Harry watched as Snape finally knocked on the door. Siren turned her head and smiled, saying, "Good morning Severus." Snape walked in, taking a deep breath as he did so. Siren must have noticed his strange behaviour, too, because she curved her eyebrows and asked, "What''s wrong? You look half dead."  
  
Snape, now, wasn't slow to reply. Being back to his hasty self, he quickly answered, "Siren, there's been an accident." He walked a bit closer to her. Siren put down the letter she had been reading and stood up.  
  
"What's happened?" she asked, her expression showing that she was obviously worried.  
  
"It appears that your grandfather knows I have been spying on him for the Headmaster," Snape solemnly replied.  
  
"What?" Siren gasped, "How?"  
  
Snape handed her the letter he held in his hand, and answered, "He sent this to me during the middle of the night. It explains everything."  
  
"He sent it to you?" Siren asked curiously, "I thought that Hogwarts had some sort of security against owls sent by Dark Wizards."  
  
"Apparently not," Snape replied dully, "though I believe that it may be due to the fact that he has switched location. The security only prevents unwanted owls sent from a specific location from coming through the post. Now that the Dark Lord has moved back into the Slytherin Castle, there aren't any restrictions against his messages from being sent to Hogwarts."  
  
"Time to update our security preferences then, I'd say," Siren added. She read the letter aloud, as though to verify that she was indeed reading every word of it. "Severus," she read out, "It has come to my attention that your loyalties to me are false. Long have I been suspicious of your treason, hitherto have I found evidence to support my worries. I'll have you know that, as a precaution, all information you have received from me in the past three months has been false, thus your efforts have been in vain. Do not bother asking anyone, even Siren, for the true answers, which I'm sure she may yet know. She shall not give it. Everything she knows will remain a secret from the Ministry, or anyone working for them. She shall remain silent, lest she should thus sentence Raven and yourself to death ." Siren paused at this, but continued, "Regardless of whether or not she does so, it would be wise to watch your back. You weren't the only death eater residing at Hogwarts. Sincerely, Lord Voldemort"  
  
A long pause followed this. Siren looked as though she was re-reading the letter to herself over and over again. Snape watched her as though waiting for a response. Finally, Siren folded up the letter and placed it on her desk.  
  
"Well," Siren sighed, "Maybe it's a fake." "It's authentic," Snape replied, "and even if it wasn't, I would not take the chance of denying it's authenticity."  
  
"I agree," she said. "Though I believe his threat of having another minion of his at Hogwarts is a bluff. If there were another, one of us would know. He's only trying to psych us out."  
  
She walked over to Snape, and took a hold of his left hand.  
  
"Don't be afraid," she said, "I won't tell anyone. I'm not going to let you be killed."  
Siren paused, and looked directly into Snape's eyes. "I've never told you this," she continued in her naturally angelic voice, and Harry could hear a sweet singing in his head, "but you've always been like a father to me. If Voldemort wants to kill you, he'll have to go through me first."  
  
"Don't be ridiculous," Snape replied. He put his free hand on her shoulder, and looked at her with gentle eyes. Harry had never seen Snape act so sincere...ever. "You'll have to tell the Ministry what you know," he continued. "Your mother and I risk our lives by merely living. Telling the Ministry any credible information will only make matters better. The more we know, the sooner we'll be able to stop the Death Eaters. No matter what you say, the mortality of your mother and I shall ever remain the same."  
  
Siren nodded her head. "Speaking of which," she said, slightly smiling and whisking off to her desk. She picked up the initial letter that she had been reading and handed it to Snape. "Mum's supposed to arrive at Hogwarts today," she said.  
  
"About time," Snape replied monotonously, reading the letter. "Wasn't she supposed to be here a few days ago?"  
  
"Who knows," Siren laughed. "She's always changing her mind about things. And you can always trust my mother to be late, so don't be surprised if she doesn't show up today either."  
  
For some unknown reason, Harry felt that the last comment seemed rather haunting. He watched on as Snape and Siren continued to talk. He listened as they agreed to tell Dumbledore about the letter as soon as the students left that afternoon. Snape eventually said farewell to Siren, leaving her alone in her classroom. Harry decided that if he was going to talk to her alone, now would be the time. He quietly made his way out into the open of the hallway. As he walked to the classroom, however, something went horribly wrong. His robes had gotten snagged on the armored statue's shoulder plate, and the entire thing came crashing to the ground.  
  
"Peeves?" Siren called out. "Is that you? Please don't tell me you've broken another one of my antique chairs..."  
  
Harry watched as Siren walked out into the hallway. She stopped abruptly as soon as she saw Harry. "Harry," she said, looking at the suit of armor laying on the floor. "Are you alright?"  
  
"Uh, yeah," Harry answered, embarrassed and feeling his cheeks turn red, "but I can''t speak for the fallen knight."  
  
Siren laughed, and, with the wave of her hand, the armor magically reassembled itself, standing upright against the wall.  
  
"Cool," Harry said, staring at the armor in awe. He peeled his eyes away from it and looked at Siren. She looked absolutely heavenly to him.  
  
"Sirius has been looking for you," Siren said, as though just remembering it. "Has he found you yet?"  
  
Harry shook his head no.  
  
"In that case," Siren continued, leading Harry into her classroom. "He wants to tell you not to pack your things. You and he are going to stay at Hogwarts until things cool down." "Cool down?" Harry repeated. "But isn't it a little dangerous to say here with .. well .. you?" Harry was trying his very hardest not to be rude when he said this, but it seemed to come out that way, regardless.  
  
"Um, well," Siren replied uneasily, a little shocked at Harry's blunt remark, "I guess so. But it'd be safer than anywhere else. Especially for you."  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Harry asked, once again in an unwillingly rude tone. "I don't have to be protected, you know. I've faced Voldemort before."  
  
"I know that," Siren shot back. "I merely meant that, well ... you'll have lesser chance of running into him here, that's all. And even if you do, you'd be safer."  
  
"To be honest, I'm not even worried about him," Harry admitted. He walked toward the window on the far east side of the room. Siren followed. "It's Andreala that I'm worried about," Harry added.  
  
"Me too," Siren replied quietly.  
  
Harry looked out the window. It was a windy day, and the clouds were thick and grey. There were mountains in the distance, and beyond them, Harry saw a vision of a tall, dark, looming castle, casting it's hellish black shadow over him, clouding his vision and poisoning his very soul with some unexpected sense of dread. Harry shook his head and closed his eyes. He re-opened them to find that the castle was gone. He gulped and turned to Siren. The dark feeling within him vanished as he looked upon her; the enchantress, working her charms in ways that Harry couldn't even begin to comprehend. Then he looked into hey eyes. For the first time he noticed how very green they were - even more so than his own. He remembered looking at Andreala - she had grey eyes, cold and unwelcome. Snape must have noted the difference during the quidditch match, thus being able to conclude that it was no Siren on the field. Harry continued to look into her eyes, but as he did, he saw Voldemort staring right back at him. She had his eyes, exactly, or what they were, at least, when he was still in his youth. Startled, Harry turned away from her.  
  
"Are you alright?" She asked him gently. Harry could hear her feet silently stepping closer to him, and once again, he heard a song of enchantment. He hadn't expected to hear Siren's song just then, and it nearly startled him. But he listened to it, and was comforted. Her song seemed to give him hope.  
  
"Yeah," Harry replied, "I was just thinking about your grandad. There's so much about him that I still don't understand."  
  
"Then ask," Siren replied, leaning against the wall on the other side of the window, her glowing radiance filling the air between her and Harry. Harry had too many questions to choose from. He looked outside again, trying to see the castle, but without success. Siren must have taken the hint.  
  
"His castle - Salazar's castle, I should say - is just past those mountains. He moved there over the summer. The Ministry tried to stop him, but it was too late. His defenses are already lining the perimeter of the property."  
  
"Death Eaters?" Harry asked with a laugh. "Then let''s go. They shouldn't be too difficult to get by."  
  
"Actually," Siren replied, "they're not just Death Eaters. Dementors, trolls, dragons, giants...you name it. They're all there, watching, waiting. They protect the Death Eaters. The Death Eaters protect the castle, and the castle protects the Dark Lord within." She cast her head down, as if not wanting to think about it. "And even if one should penetrate the castle, it'd be a hopeless battle, and one fought in vain. He can't die this time."  
  
"What?" Harry exclaimed. "Why not?"  
  
"He has the Yfel," Siren answered with a sorrowful sigh.  
  
Harry still had not even the slightest hint of a clue as to what an Yfel was. He decided to ask. "Um Siren, about that Yfel-" "Yes?"  
  
"Well..what is it, exactly?" Harry felt like a fool for asking. It was probably something simple that every witch of wizard knew about.  
  
"Sirius hasn't told you yet?" Siren asked curiously.  
  
"Er, no," Harry replied hesitantly.  
  
"I was going to do a few Dark Arts lessons on it after the holidays," she sighed. "It's a shame that I no longer can. It was a good lesson. I even have pictures of it." She paused. "Do you want to see them?" she asked Harry, her face lighting up with anticipation.  
  
"Well, alright." Harry still didn't know what it was. Hopefully the pictures would help him to understand better. Siren led Harry back to her desk. She opened one of the drawers and ruffled through some papers. She finally pulled out an envelope.  
  
"I took these with an ordinary muggle camera," she said, taking the pictures out of the envelope. She handed the photos to Harry. They were Polaroids, and Harry noted that they were each labeled. He looked at the first one and literally gasped. It was a picture of a necklace. It seemed to be more than just that, however. It almost looked like a star. It was beautiful, but that wasn't what made it breathtaking. It seemed as though it were itself some sort of enchantment. It looked and felt powerful. Almost as though it were an actual being, it seemed old and wise, yet all the same young and new.  
  
Harry couldn't find any English word that could describe what he saw. The picture was labeled, ''March 3, 1995.''  
  
"You took the picture this year?" Harry said, finally managing to speak.  
  
"Yes," Siren replied. She looked at the picture with Harry, then added bitterly, "before the fools at the Ministry took the Yfel from me." She sighed. "That's when things started to go downhill." Harry looked at her, and noticed a look of loathing upon her beautiful face, one which he had never before seen. It was almost frightening, and it made him uncomfortable.  
  
"How so?" he asked. "Other than Voldemort coming back, I mean."  
  
Siren laughed in a manner which implied that she was caught up in a reverie full of stress, folly, and things so unbelievable as to be humourous. "Well," she replied, "like I said, the Ministry took the Yfel away from me. It was rightfully mine. It's an Heirloom of the Slytherin family. Anyways, Hunter had seen pictures and told his father about it. His father then told the Ministry, and the Ministry, being as greedy and ignorant as they are, decided that the Yfel would be better off in their possession. Now that my grandfather has gotten a hold of it, it makes sense. Hunter's father told the Ministry that I had it, knowing fully well that if the Ministry confiscated it, it would be easier for the Dark Lord to steal it upon his new arrival. The Ministry didn't care to think that it would have been safer with me, or my mother. Now that mistake shall be their undoing."  
  
"How?" Harry asked, interrupting her. "I mean - what does the Yfel do?"  
  
"Oh, sorry," Siren replied, snapping out of her nostalgic daze. "I guess I should have told you that before I started babbling." She took the top photo away from Harry and looked at it a bit. Harry looked at the other remaining in his hand and noticed that they all appeared to look the same as the first, only from different angles. Siren then pointed out the star- jewel in the center of the Yfel. "This," she said to him," is the heart of the Yfel. It contains all the necklace's power. The necklace was made by Salazar Slytherin for Andreala Durmstrang. As wicked and corrupt as those two were, they were madly in love - such a love that has not been duplicated for many years, if even at all. He gave it to her on the eve of their wedding in Southern Wales, I believe. He had spent countless months making it. Though proud was the heart and mind of Salazar, he also understood how hated he was. He knew that he had enemies all over the world. He did not fear them, however, though he did fear for Andreala's well-being because of them. Every day they lived was their possible last, but still Andreala cleaved to him. I guess you could say that she was naive as to what sort of danger she was actually in. Fearing for his lover's safety, Salazar dedicated himself to creating a vessel for immortality. This was before the discovery of the Elixir of Life, mind you, and it is still a mystery as to how Salazar accomplished what he did. He created the Yfel in a way so that its wearer would become invincible to any mortal wound, illness, or famine. Andreala was free from harm so long as she wore it, which is the main reason behind her infamous power. She was unstoppable."  
  
"But she did die," Harry said, "right? I remember reading that she did."  
  
"Yes, but it was during birth," Siren answered. "Andreala successfully gave birth to a daughter, Serena. But Andreala knew that Serena was born into a world and life of danger, so she put the Yfel around Serena's neck only minutes after she was born. Andreala didn't know that she was still bleeding, and as she placed the Yfel around Serena's neck, she began to feel weak, and she bled to death only a few seconds later. Salazar stayed by her dead body for days, or weeks even, unknowingly neglecting his daughter while under his spell of grief and despair. Coming eventually to his wits, he held Serena lovingly in his arms, and vowed to always protect her. He took Andreala's body to a store chamber within his castle and placed it upon a slab of stone adorned with white and green jewels. The light was lit with ever-burning candles, and he cast a spell on her to make her body preserved in its perfected state for the rest of time. Since then she's remained within the castle (though nobody knew it) until now. So it has been told to all of the heirs of Slytherin thus far."  
  
"So...Voldemort brought her back, right?" Harry asked.  
  
"As far as I know," Siren replied dimly, "but I fear that it may be worse than that."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
Siren looked at Harry intensely, as though trying to read his thoughts. "If I tell you," she replied warily, "you must promise not to tell anyone. Not your friends, not Sirius, and not Dumbledore."  
  
Harry considered this for a moment, then nodded his head. "Okay," he replied, "I promise."  
  
Siren smiled with relief and continued. "Over the summer, there have been times when I was under the Imperius Curse, care of my grandad. I don''t remember all that happened. I was under it the day that your relatives were killed, and I was afraid that I had unwillingly done it. The Daily Prophet had written that if Voldemort did do it, it would have had to have been with the help of a very powerful witch or wizard.. I was relieved when Snape told me that it wasn't me who helped him. Nobody knew who it was, though."  
  
"How did Snape know it wasn't you?" Harry asked.  
  
"He said that I was with him and the death eaters that entire day," Siren replied, "with him and Lucius Malfoy mostly. Apparently we were discussing possible plans of actions against you, though I remember it not. But after hearing the news of that, and knowing that Andreala now lives, another of my Imperius blackouts makes sense. It was mid-June. I remember snapping out of the curse, and my grandfather seemed unusually joyful. He thanked me for my help, and then disappeared. That was before he killed your relatives. I can only assume that I somehow helped him to resurrect Andreala while under the Imperius Curse."  
  
"Did he already have the Yfel at that point?" Harry asked.  
  
"No," Siren replied. "He only obtained it recently, or so I've heard. If she hasn't already, though, I'll warrant that Andreala will try to take it from him."  
  
Harry said no more. He looked at the pictures again. As he looked through them, he heard a clock chiming. It was already eleven o'clock. The train would be leaving soon.  
  
"I have to go," Harry said to her, "before the train leaves. I want to say goodbye to Ron and Hermione."  
  
Siren looked at the small clock on her desk. "I should go, too," she added. "Hunter will be leaving as well."  
  
Harry, who was turning around to go, stopped suddenly. "But - why would you want to say goodbye to him? After all he's done to you?"  
  
Siren shrugged her shoulders. "I dunno," she replied. "I feel bad for him. His dad was just murdered. I want Hunter to know that he can still change." She put the photographs of the Yfel back into her desk drawer. "I've learned a lot over the summer, Harry. Abandonment nurtures the evil that comfort and care could have demolished. The future promises it, the present foretells it, and the past proves it. If everyone, including me, were to give up on Hunter, who knows what might happen. He might end up like his father, or worse."  
  
"You certainly are merciful," Harry replied, looking at Siren with a new found awe.  
  
"Well, mercy redeems the soul," Siren answered quietly. Harry wondered what she meant by it. She was speaking in riddles, as far as Harry could tell.  
  
***  
  
"Is she alvright?" Krum asked Harry after his return to the common room. Harry had told Krum, Hermione, and Ron that he had visited her, and that he was to stay at Hogwarts instead of going back to Sirius' castle.  
  
"She's fine," Harry answered, "but she seems really down."  
  
"I don't blame her," said Ron, who had finally gotten all of his things packed. "I mean, if my grandad was You-Know-Who, I don't think I'd ever be happy."  
  
Harry glared at Ron, and Hermione hit his arm scornfully. Ron looked at Krum, and suddenly remembered that Krum, or anyone else, wasn't supposed to know about Siren and her family. Krum, however, laughed.  
  
"Don't vorry," he said. "Siren told me about him a long time ago."  
  
"Really?'' Hermione asked. "I didn't know that you two were that close."  
  
"Yeah," said Harry. "I thought you just knew her from Durmstrang."  
  
Krum blushed, only a little bit, and replied slowly, "Well...she vas my girlfriend until I met Hermione."  
  
Hermione looked like she had just been slapped in the face. In a very dignified manner, she stood up, her head held high. "I have to get Crookshanks," she said, and stormed off to her private prefect room. Krum sighed and went after her.  
  
"Well that was a surprise," Harry said after Hermione and Krum were up the stairs.  
  
"Yeah," Ron chuckled, "he actually said Hermione's name right."  
  
***  
  
Harry had walked with Ron, Hermione, and Krum to the train station. They all said their goodbyes to Harry and got on the train. Harry watched as the train slowly chugged away, gaining speed and it trailed off into the distance. Harry turned to leave, and as he did, he saw Siren entering a gift shop that was placed along the station. She stayed inside for about half a minute, then came back out again, looking rather disappointed. Not noticing Harry, she walked back towards the school. Harry slowly followed her in the same direction. As he was walking, it began to snow - lightly at first, and then gradually the snowflakes became larger and fell more rapidly. Harry could barely see Siren in her white robes only 75 yards away from him. She seemed to mix in with the scenery. She walked with such grace that it seemed almost as though she wasn't walking at all, but rather floating along the ground. Before long, Harry could no longer see her amidst the dense snowfall.  
  
Harry entered the castle through its majestic front doors, which was now being guarded by two tall men in dark black robes. Whether they were aurors or not, Harry wasn't sure. Harry was planning on returning to the Gryffindor common room, but his plans were put on hold as . Snape, who was about 20 feet behind Harry, called out to him.  
  
"Potter," he said, and Harry turned around to face him. Snape walked briskly towards him, and added, "have you seen Siren?" Harry noted that Snape looked very grieved.  
  
"Yeah," Harry replied dully, "last I saw she was walking back to the castle from the train station."  
  
"If you see her again, tell her to come see me in my office immediately," Snape said darkly, "understand?"  
  
"Yes, sir," Harry answered nonchalantly, and he continued on his way. As he turned around, however, there stood Siren, as though she had appeared out of thin air.  
  
"Looking for me?" she asked Snape with a kind smile.  
  
Harry, not wanting to look nosy, acknowledged Siren with a nod, and went on his way to the Gryffindor common room. He turned left at the next corner, and he could still hear Snape and Siren's voices. He decided to stop and listen in on their conversation, just in case it was about Voldemort.  
  
"The clerk at the gift shop sad that my mother hasn't arrived yet," he heard Siren say.  
  
"Siren," Snape sighed, "you mother will not be coming to Hogwarts."  
  
There was a chilling silence. "Why not?" he heard Siren ask softly.  
  
"Because," Snape replied slowly, "there's been an accident at the Ministry Headquarters... your mother's been killed."  
  
____________________________________________________________________________ __ Awww *sniff* Man there's a lot of death in my story...lol. Meh *shrugs* More to come, too ;) I hope you liked it. I wanted to make it a bit darker than the other HP books, so please don't be shocked at some of the stuff that's to come. Please review :)  
  
The next chapters might not be up for a while. I'm still working on writing chapter 16, and I have to type up chapters 14 and 15 on the computer. They should be uploaded in a couple days, hopefully.  
  
-Summer :) 


	14. Bullsworth and Kisses

OK wtf...I uploaded this earlier, and it was all jacked up without proper spacing...hopefully it'll be fixed once I upload it this time...if not I'll try and fix it tomorrow. So sorry :(

  
  


Becca (Utsukushii Monogatari)- Thankee kindly, ma'am :) And lol....there will be some SW/HP theorizing going down in the next few chaps. Right before I introduce your character :P EVERYBODY READ THIS GIRL'S HP FICS! They are soooo good. Makes me wanna cry, how good they are :)

  


Ali: Hehehe....maybe I'll have your future character kill them ALL off. Hahha j/k I'd never hurt a Weasley...well....maybe Percy or Ginny...:P

  


Amanda: AHAHAHA! Lmao girl you rock my world. Lol I'ma make your character constantly say "I have a crush on every boooy..." or when she's with Voldy she can be all, "I'm totally crushing. Yodel lay hee hooo...." Hehehehehe

  
  


**For those of you who don't know...I know these three chicks pretty well :P They've all agreed to have cameo appearances in the future chaps, so be on the lookout for my future chars:

Amanda cameo char - Sicily O'Faolain

Becca (Utsukushii Monogatari) cameo char: Rebecca Steel

Ali's cameo char: Name has yet to be determined...:P

  


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Chapter 14: Bullsworth and Kisses 

  


After wandering about the Gryffindor common room for an hour or two, Harry still wondered as to what he should be doing Was he supposed to remain silent and ignored, as though he hadn't heard about the death of Siren's mother? Or was he supposed to talk about it to someone? Was he supposed to confront Siren? Or comfort her? Harry decided to wait.

Days went by. Then weeks. Christmas was only a few days away when Harry finally decided to talk to Siren. He walked through the quiet halls of Hogwarts. He had but only the company of himself and a few chatty paintings. As had been the passing of those lonely weeks without his friends. He missed Ron and Hermione dearly. On occasion, Dumbledore would go to the owl post in Hogsmeade with Harry, both hoping for letters from the students or the students' parents, ensuring the Hogwarts staff that all was glad and safe in the wizarding world outside of Hogwarts. Those letters never came. Dumbledore speculated that the Ministry of Magic had restricted all owls from leaving or entering Howarts and Hogsmeade, just to be safe that the "death eater at Hogwarts," as Voldemort had hinted to, wouldn't intercept them and learn what might be classified Ministry of Magic information. 

As for the staff of Hogwarts, nobody was allowed to leave, not until they had discovered who the death eater amongst them might be, if indeed one was residing at the school. And as for Harry, he was glad to know that Lupin would be staying at Hogwarts as well, though he and Sirius were quite often not to be found. Harry knew that they were only dealing with top secret Ministry information, but he still felt as though they were ignoring him. To be quite honest, he thought that everyone seemed to be ignoring his inferior presence in the castle.

Eventually arriving at Siren's classroom, Harry found that she was not there. Something awful took its grip on Harry's stomach. He felt that something was wrong. Quickly overcoming his panic, he fled to the staff room to see if anyone knew where she was. He almost knew that Siren was in danger. 

Flying down the stairs, Harry soon arrived in the staff room. He was relieved to see Siren sitting on one of the couches. He was surprised, however, to see Krum sitting with her.

"Viktor?" Harry said, walking towards the two. "What are you doing here? Is Hermione or Ron with you?"

Viktor shook his head no. "The Ministry of Magic let me come back to Hogvarts."

"I asked them to let him come," Siren continued. "I just needed someone to talk to about something."

"Your mom?" Harry replied rather bluntly.

Siren smiled, but in a sad, though reassuring way. "Among other things." 

"I'm sorry, by the way," Harry added softly. "I know that you were looking forward to seeing her." 

Siren half-smiled at him. "Thanks," she replied, and Harry could see a sparkling tear forming in her right eye.

  


*****

  


After that day,. Things in school seemed happier. Maybe it was the spirit of Christmas. Maybe it was all of the beautiful white snow that had recently accumulated upon the Hogwarts grounds. Whatever it was, everyone was in a better mood. Even Snape seemed less cruel than usual.

On Christmas morning, Harry rushed down to the Great Hall. He knew that everyone left in the school - the staff, Sirius, Lupin, Krum, Siren, and himself - were to have a morning feast on Christmas day. As he found his way to the Great Hall, he heard someone singing Christmas carols. He peaked inside the doors of the Great Hall and realized that it was the Hogwarts ghosts, gathered next to a beautiful Christmas tree that Hagrid had brought in only the day before. Harry walked inside and was greeted by smiles from McGonagall and Dumbledore, who appeared to be the only ones already there. Harry must have been early.

"Merry Christmas, Harry," Dumbledore said to him with a light pat on the shoulder.

"Merry Christmas, Professor, Professor McGonagall," Harry replied. "Where's everyone else?"

"Oh, Siren and Professor Snape were just here, but left to retrieve something from the post office," McGonagall answered. "The others should be here shortly."

Sure enough, about five minutes later, Sirius and Lupin showed up, soon followed by the other staff members. It took nearly half an hour for Siren and Snape to return, and when they did, they returned with grim faces.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked Siren as she sat down next to him at the large table directly in the center of the Hall. 

"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered quietly, but it didn't take a mind-reader to know that she was lying. Nevertheless, Harry decided not to ask her anything further.

"Have you seen Viktor?" Siren asked Dumbledore.

"No," he replied, a hint of concern in his voice, "as a matter of fact, I haven't. Perhaps he slept in a little late. Harry, why don't you run up to the common room and get him?"

"Actually, Professor," Siren piped in, "he slept in the Slytherin common room last night. We stayed up late talking about my mum, and I told him that he could just sleep on the couch instead of wandering through the halls trying to find his way back to the Gryffindor common room."

"He wasn't awake when you left?" Snape asked her. The tone of his voice implied that he didn't much like the fact that Krum had been in the Slytherin tower the previous night. 

"No, he was still asleep," she replied. "I left pretty early. I didn't want to wake him."

"Perhaps you should go fetch him, then," said McGonagall. "I doubt that he'd want to miss breakfast this morning."

Siren nodded her head, and as she stood up to leave, the doors to the Hall opened, and in walked Krum.

"Sorry for being late," Viktor said as he took a seat on the other side of Siren. "I got lost on my vay back to the Gryffindor common room this morning."

And so the feast began. Harry and Siren talked about what they should do during the holidays to stay entertained. Krum offered to show Harry and Siren some new quidditch moves. Harry was eager, but Siren declined.

"I have a lot of research to do over the holidays," she said. What kind of research, however, she wouldn't comment on.

"Is it dark magic?" Harry asked her. "You mentioned in class that we'd be studying some really powerful curses after the holidays, considering that the school will be running again by then, that is."

"I really shouldn't say," Siren answered.

"Oh come on, I won't tell anyone," Harry replied with a smile.

"Yeah," agreed Krum. "Vot kind of dark arts are you researching?"

"I'd really rather not say," Siren replied again, taking a sip of her eggnog.

"Does it have anything to do with Voldemort?" Harry persisted.

"That's enough out of you, Potter," Snape scolded, giving Harry a dark look. No one else, save Siren and Krum, noticed this. Harry was waiting for Sirius to stand up for him and say something nasty to Snape, but he didn't. Sirius was too preoccupied with Lupin, more than likely discussing a more enjoyable topic than dark magic.

Just as Harry and Krum were beginning to talk more about quidditch, a crow flew through the window of the Great Hall, carrying a letter in its beak. The entire staff looked apprehensive, and Siren looked afraid. The crow flew above Siren, who now had her wand out and ready, then it dropped the letter onto her lap. The crow flew right back out from whence it came, without even stopping to pick at the food on the table. 

"Perhaps I should check that for you first," Sirius said, standing up and walking closer to Siren. Everyone else remained silent. Krum and Harry looked at one another with looks of confusion. Neither of them really understood why everyone seemed to upset about the crow and its letter.

"No," Siren replied quickly. "It's alright, Sirius."

"It'd be prudent if you allowed for him to check it first," Snape added. "He is an auror after all." Harry was shocked at this. He had never seen Snape agree so readily with Sirius's judgement.

But Siren had already opened the letter, and was reading it. Harry watched as her eyes skimmed over it from side to side, then finally resting at the bottom, as though in deep thought. She finally shook her head in disgust and crumpled up the piece of paper. "I can't believe him," she said aloud.

"What did he say?" Dumbledore asked calmly.

"Who?" asked Harry. He was utterly confused about what was going on. 

"My grandfather," Siren answered. She looked up at Harry. "The crow is the messenger of the Death Eaters, but their use is usually restricted to only Voldemort himself."

"They never use owls?" Krum asked. 

"They do," Siren added, "but not usually. A letter sent by a crow from the Death Eaters is usually, um..."

"A symbol of alliance," Dumbledore replied sternly. "A sign of respect, or friendship, even." 

"He obviously thinks that I'm on his side," Siren added quickly. "Or is hoping that I am, at least. Maybe he's trying to tell me that he doesn't want me as an enemy anymore. What an idiot." She threw the letter onto the table, muttering swear words under her breath as she did so. 

"What was the letter about?" Snape asked slowly, breaking the uneasy silence that followed Siren's words.

Siren shrugged. "Nothing, really. Some nonsense about a meeting he's having in Argentina. He wants me to be there tonight."

"That's hardly nothing," Lupin said, furrowing his brow. "This means that he's left the castle."

"This could be a good opportunity to try and catch him, or at least some of his followers," Sirius added, turning to Dumbledore to see his reaction.

"Not with the Yfel around his throat," Dumbledore replied gravely. "The letter may be a trap. He may want us to show up. We'll just have to wait for now. Wait, and hope."

Everyone seemed demoralized after this.

"He sure knows how to ruin a nice morning," Harry stated after a few more seconds of silence.

"Agreed," Krum added, continuing to pick at the food on his plate with his fork.

After everyone was finished eating their breakfast, they went their own ways, neglecting to collect Voldemort's letter which still laid upon the table. That letter was eventually cleaned up by the house elves and taken down to the Hogwarts kitchens, where they secretly read it amongst themselves. "The Headmaster should most certainly see this letter," stated one of them. "Immediately!"

  


*****

  


Harry found himself quite bored for the rest of the day, just sitting around the common room all alone. Hedwig was outside somewhere. Dobby and the other house elves were busy preparing for the Christmas dinner, and even the paintings were off somewhere. Harry was utterly alone. For the first time he yearned for danger. Something exciting. Sadly enough, if Voldemort was to appear before him at that very moment, he would have welcomed him with a standing ovation.

Just as Harry was about to be consumed by the absolute laziness that came with boredom, he saw his Firebolt laying against a chair across the room from him. He decided to go for a ride.

  


*****

  


"Come on, Siren," Krum persisted as he and Siren sat in the Slytherin common room. "Just this once."

"No," Siren replied with a girlish giggle. "We can't! I think that Hermione would be upset with you if we did."

Krum walked closer to her, holding her hands in his. "She doesn't haff to find out," he replied with a smile. Siren looked at him and smiled as well.

"Viktor," she said softly, "we could get caught."

"Come one," he said again, "it'd be so much fun! You know you vant to do it. I've been vanting to do it all year."

"We could get into trouble," Siren said sternly. "I could get fired if word of this gets out. Do you know how illegal this is?"

"Most dark arts are illegal," Krum replied. "But you still do them."

"Because I'm a teacher, Viktor," she replied curtly.

"Then teach me!" Krum pleaded.

Siren paused and looked at Krum for a bit before she answered. "Fine," she said quietly, "but don't tell anyone. C'mon, we'll make the potion on top of the Slytherin tower. No one will see us there."

  


*****

  


Harry was flying high above the Forbidden Forest. He noted that it didn't look so scary from a bird's eye view. After flying about the castle grounds for an hour or so, he decided to head back. It was getting very cold, and even his ridiculous amount of boredom within the castle seemed more desirable than flying around on a cold winter's night. As Harry made his way past what looked to be the Hufflepuff common room, he saw a dark cloud hovering above the Slytherin tower. Curious, he slowly flew towards it.

His initial thoughts were that it was Snape, concocting some strange potion which required a cold environment, but as he flew closer, he saw that it was not the case. He inched closer, and was finally able to see Krum and Siren standing atop the tower with a cauldron between them which was bubbling fiercely and giving off dark gray fumes of smoke. Harry decided t check it out. He flew over to the tower and landed.

"Hi, Harry," Krum said.

"Harry," Siren said hesitantly, looking up at him, "Hmm..keep this a secret, alright?"

"Sure," Harry replied, getting closer to the cauldron. "What is that?"

"A Bullsworth potion," Siren answered.

"Which does what?" Harry asked.

"It allows the drinker to pause time without anyone else knowing it," Siren answered.

"Ve vant to make tonight last longer," Krum added.

"Why?" Harry asked. "Isn't this sort of thing against the law?" 

"Yeah," Siren replied, not seeming phased at all. "Tonight has to last longer because I have a lot of research to be done by tomorrow. I don't want to work all night, though. I just need this stuff to give me an extra hour or so."

"And I vant to stay here as long as possible before dawn," Krum added.

"Why is that?" Harry asked as he took a closer peak at the cauldron.

"I have to leave at dawn," he replied. "And I don't vant to."

"You want to drink some when it's ready?" Siren asked him nonchalantly.

"I can't," Harry replied nervously. "It's illegal."

"A lot of things are illegal, Harry," Siren answered with a laugh. "C'mon, it'll be fun." 

She looked intensely at Harry with a smile on her face. Krum also looked at Harry, waiting for his answer. Harry knew it was wrong, but something deep within him wanted to go against the rules. He wanted to be bad. "Alright," Harry finally answered. "But we have to do something fun. I wouldn't want to go to Azkaban in vain."

Siren smiled. "Right on, Harry," she replied.

After about five minutes of waiting in silence, the potion was ready. 

"You're sure you've mixed it all correctly?" Harry asked before he took a sip f it.

"Of course," Siren replied. "Snape and I have made it dozens of times. Though, those times were under permission os the Ministry of Magic."

Siren began to drink her share first, then Krum, and finally Harry.

"I don't think this is working," Harry said after a bit. "I don't feel any different."

"You won't," Siren replied. "To stop time, all you have to do is snap your fingers. We can only pause time for up to four hours, though."

"Vot if ve vant to un-pause time?" Krum asked after finishing his share of the potion.

"Snap your fingers again," she answered. "But since it's the three of us, we all have to snap at the same time. And once we've paused up to what would be four hours to us, the potion wears off."

Harry was eager to test it out. "Let's try it now," he said. Krum and Siren agreed.

"On three," Siren replied. "One...two...three."

They all snapped their fingers.

The wind stopped. There was no noise. The world stopped spinning, but the pull of gravity still pulled. It had no time to stop pulling. Time had no presence on the Earth anymore.

"Cool," Harry said to himself.

"Vow," Krum gasped, poking at a bug on the all of the tower, which was dead still.

"So," Siren said, walking around a bit. Harry finally noticed how beautiful she looked. Her hair was let down and straight. She wore robes of blood red which were open down the center, and the neck of the long black dress she wore underneath accentuated her cleavage brilliantly. "What do you guys want to do?" she asked.

"What is there to do?" Harry asked.

"Anything we want," Siren smiled wickedly. "The world is ours. We can be as bad as we want, and do whatever we want. No one will even know."

Siren's words lifted Harry's spirit to a very content place. And with that, something in him changed. He no longer cared about the rest of the world. Why should he? It had been ignoring him ever since the school had closed, and now was Harry's time to ignore it. Harry looked out from the tower, and replied, "Let's raise some Hell."

  


*****

  


Harry, Siren, and Krum decided to have a peak in the staff room first, then go into the Forbidden Forest. If they had time, they would raid a few stores in Hogsmeade, which was Krum's idea, before Siren would leave to conduct whatever research she had to do.

"Nobody will find out, Harry," Siren would say, "so don't' be so afraid. Live a little."

As soon as they arrived in the staff room, Harry burst out laughing. He saw Snape talking to McGonagall, both of their faces frozen in ridiculous expressions. McGonagall, who appeared to have been listening to Snape, had her bottom lip curled out, as though she was about the clean her bottom teeth with her tongue. Snape looked like he was about to pronounce the letter "f" with a hilarious over-bite and his eyebrows raised high upon his forehead.

"Siren, look at this," Harry said, but Siren was no longer right beside him. She was across the room, near the window, looking at Dumbledore. He was frozen in a very forlorn fashion, looking glumly upon a letter he was holding in his hands.

"He's reading the letter my grandfather sent to me," Siren said aloud. To Harry, she seemed a little wary while she said this.

"Vot does it say?" Krum asked her, walking closer. He reached out to grab the letter, but Siren slapped his hand away.

"Don't touch it!" she gasped. "He'll figure out that we've been using a Bullsworth potion if anything suddenly changes when time resumes again. You guys, we absolutely cannot move anything or touch anything unless there's nobody around, got it?"

Harry and Krum both nodded their heads in understanding. Krum didn't know how lucky he was that he didn't read the letter. His knowledge of its contents would've resulted in dangerous consequences.

"This is boring," Harry said as they made their way down the Hogwarts grounds and towards the forest.

"I agree," said Siren.

"Ve should do something dangerous," Krum added, walking ahead of the two, then turning around to face them. "Siren, lets do some more dark magic."

"Viktor, you're not at Durmstrang anymore," Harry replied. "We can't just do dark magic all the time. We'll get into way too much trouble."

"So we're just going to walk around, then?" Siren spat. "Harry, you said, 'let's raise some Hell,' didn't you?"

"Yes, but-"

"But what?" Siren interrupted loudly. "The world is ours! We can do anything, Harry, anything!"

Harry had to admit that the offer was tempting, but what if they were to be caught?

"Bullocks!" Harry yelled back, walking closer to Siren. "What's wrong, Siren? You admire your grandfather so much that you want to be a criminal, too?"

"But Harry-"

"No!" Harry continued. "If you want to go to Azkaban, that's fine, but I'm not going with you."

"Harry!" Siren was finally able to say. "We're NOT going to Azkaban. Even if we do get caught, my grandfather will help us out. He wouldn't let us get thrown away for something as petty as this."

Krum looked unsure. "Even Harry?" he asked.

"Even Harry, if I asked him to," Siren answered, her face screwed up with anger.

"What?" Harry scoffed. "I think you're mind's going dumb, Siren. Firstly, your grandfather wants me dead. Secondly, he tried to get Andreala to kill you. Thirdly, you hate him, remember?! Why the hell would he want to help us?!"

"Listen to me, Harry," Siren replied hastily, "a lot of people have tried to kill me in the Ministry of Magic, but now that I'm on their side, they're trying to protect me. My grandfather could do the same turnaround. Besides, if my grandfather really wanted me dead, I'd be dead right now. Same goes for you. Do you think you defeated him all under your own power?" Siren got close to Harry, right up in his face. "He let you live, Harry! Maybe not when you were a baby, but ever since Quirrel, he's let you live. Why else is he still alive, Harry? If he can't kill someone with one shot, he'll fight that person to the death. But not with you. Instead of chasing you down day after day, he's waited. And do you know why?!"

Harry didn't answer, but waited for Siren to continue.

"Because, Harry," she answered, "he wants you on his side more than anything, just like your parents. He wanted them on his side. He gave them time, too. He waited until they were older. When they still refused him, he decided to stop playing games, and killed them. That's what he's doing to you. That's what he's doing to me. He's waiting. He's playing a game with us. And if we're smart, we'll join him eventually or else he'll get tired of waiting and kill us off."

Siren turned away from Harry and walked a few steps ahead of him, looking past the mountains to where Salazar's castle would be.

"Then why did he try to kill me at the Dursleys?" Harry asked, his voice shaking with anger and frustration. 

"He waited for you to leave," Siren answered. "The Dursleys knew too much about what had happened that night when your parents died. They had to go." She turned around and looked at him. "You wont' win, Harry," she added. "No one can defeat him. No one ever will. We'll all bow to him, or die."

Harry said nothing, but took into consideration that Siren might be right. And what if she was? Would he then join Voldemort? A voice in his head answered, 'Yes. You could be great, Harry. The world is yours for four hours. Join him and you could have it forever.'"

"I'm going back inside," Krum said, obviously uncomfortable. "This is getting too veird." And with that, he turned and walked away towards the school. When they could no longer see him, Harry and Siren looked at one another.

"You're not lying," Harry said to her.

"For once, you're being told the bitter truth," she said. She walked closer to him, and her expression became softer. "I know it's wrong to join him, but what else can I do?"

Harry didn't reply, but for the first time looked upon Siren in a new light. He had grown to care about her very much. For the first time he realized that he had taken a great liking to her. He had a crush on the true heir of Slytherin.

"I want to have a family someday, y'know?" she continued. "That wouldn't work out too well if I was killed. Besides, he's the only family that I have left now."

"Which is Voldemort's fault in the first place," Harry replied, trying not to sound too rude. "He killed your parents."

"No!" Siren snapped. "He did not! The Ministry of Magic did. THEY killed my father, thinking that he was a death eater. They made up the lie that my grandfather had killed him after they realized their mistake. I've never blamed them, thinking that it was just an accident. I know better than that now. The research I've been doing lately, with Snape's help, proves that the Ministry killed him. Snape's old letters to Dumbledore when he was a spy set my grandfather in Venice when my father was killed. Dumbledore wrote back to him saying that the Ministry was looking for the Dark Lord in Moscow, and that they had killed a very important death eater there.

"They also killed my mother." She sighed softly. She bowed her head, hiding her face. "They made the same 'mistake' again. What if I'm next?" She began to cry silently. Harry couldn't help it. He stepped closer towards her and hugged her; lightly at first, then tighter. She began to cry a little harder, and clutched on to Harry's robes. The two said nothing. They stood there, holding one another for about five minutes. Maybe it was the fact that the entire world was still, but for the moment, Harry took notice of nothing else but Siren. She felt soft and small in his arms, and some floating feeling in his stomach made him feel complete. When she had finally stopped crying, Siren lifted her head and pulled away a bit. Still holding on to Harry, she looked deeply into his eyes. Harry had a very strong urge to kiss her, but decided not to. It would be his first, and he didn't want to mess it up with someone as beautiful and special as Siren. But Harry had no choice in the matter. Before he could think twice, Siren slowly leaned in to him, and kissed him softly on the lips. Immediately, Harry could hear voices, angelic at the least, singing softly in his ears. He pulled her closer to him, deepening the kiss. The kiss was more than Harry would have anticipated. He never wanted it to end. The touch of her soft lips, her tongue caressing his - Harry would've liked very much to go further with Siren right then and there, but he couldn't. Not out in the open like that.

Siren slowly pulled away. She let her body loosen and melt within Harry's arms.

"If I join him, will you come with me?" she asked him, her voice gentle and in no more than a whisper.

Harry didn't hesitate to answer. "Absolutely." 

  


*****

  


The Bullsworth potion's spell wore off quicker than Harry had intended it to. He and Siren had kissed a bit more before going back to her classroom, where they went a little further than just kissing.

"I don't' know what's come over me." Harry laughed as he stood and did up his robes. Siren was doing the same, though she was still sitting on her desk, which had papers scattered upon it in a mess.

"What do you mean?' Siren smiled. "Have you never done it before?"

"Not until now," Harry replied, sitting down next to Siren and putting his arm around her. She snuggled in closer to him. "But it's not that," Harry continued. "It was great. Better than I imagined or dreamed it could be like. But that's not what I meant."

"Then what do you mean?" Siren asked quietly, burying herself in Harry's embrace.

"It's just that I've never felt so..." Harry searched for words to describe the sensation that was overtaking his body and soul, "...alive."

Siren looked up at him, still pressed against his body. She smiled as Harry brushed her hair behind her ear. "I know exactly what you mean," Siren replied, holding on to his hand. Harry kissed her forehead. Just as he did, the world awoke from its timeless slumber. There was wind blowing against the window. Thunder boomed from afar. A storm was coming.

"Should we go find Krum?" Siren asked as she peeled herself away from Harry, stood up, and tried to fix her messy hair.

"Actually,"Harry answered, walking up from behind her and wrapping his arms around her tiny waist, "I was hoping we could go to visit your grandfather."

"Already?" Siren asked, turning around in his arms, looking at him in the eye. "I mean, once we leave we can't come back. It'd be too risky."

"If I don't leave now, I probably never will," Harry replied, sighing. "It's now or never."

Siren put her arms around Harry's neck. She stood on her tip toes to kiss him. She looked at him lovingly. "Are you sure you want this, Harry?"

"Only if you do," Harry replied. "Are you sure you want to?"

"It's not that big of a deal for me, Harry," Siren smiled. "I'm used to being around him by now. But you...I mean, to change sides completely. What about Ron and Hermione? Or Sirius? You have so many friends here, Harry, I don't want you to lose that."

Harry looked deeply into Siren's eyes. He was in love with her, there was no doubt in his mind. The feeling was strong, so strong that he had no other cares in the world, not even for Ron or Hermione.

"If they're not with us, they're against us," Harry answered.

  
  


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Hehehe I wanted SO bad to name this chapter "Booty." Hehehehe. Hope ya liked it in some way or another ;) 

  
  


-Summer


	15. Enchanting Dumbledore

Utsukushii Monogatari: Hehehehe, Harry can't kill anyone! Not even in my story :P Or CAN he?? *dun dun dunnn* :P Hey, your cameo char is mentioned in this chap, near the end ;)

Ali: Hehe thanks hun :) *hugs* But you'll hafta wait a lil longer for your char to be introduced :P

Amanda: lol there shall be more violence to come that you may indulge yourself in :P

icedragon925: Thank you :) I hope you like the chaps to come.

Duochang97: Hehe tis not the ending. It's only winter in the story. This book will go on to late June ;)

AX: You are quite smart. Too smart for your own good...hehe j/k. You'll find out soon enough, m'dear :)

Gem: hahaha thanks hun :) Yeah Rebecca's at the end of this chap. Well, she's mentioned at least :P

I hope that you guys like this chapter. It's my favourite so far. It explains a lot about the rest of the book, so pay close attention :)

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Chapter Fifteen: "Enchanting Dumbledore"

  


Harry was now in the Gryffindor common room, getting his clothes packed and ready to go. As he grabbed his broomstick, Harry heard a very familiar voice.

"Where is Harry Potter going so late at night, sir?"

It was Dobby.

"Dobby," Harry replied, stunned. He had nearly forgotten about Dobby still being at Hogwarts. "What are you doing in here?"

"Well, sir," Dobby replied in his squeaky voice, "we house elves have nothing to do sir, now that Hogwarts is closed. Everybody has left. Dobby misses seeing Harry Potter, sir."

Harry tried to contain his frustration. Didn't Dobby know when he wasn't wanted?

"This is kind of a bad time right now," Harry replied, trying to think up an excuse for packing his things."

"Is Harry Potter also leaving?" Dobby asked, his voice full of lament now. He took a few hopeful steps closer to Harry.

"Actually," Harry replied, quickly pulling a story out of his head, "Viktor and I are going to keep Siren company in the Slytherin common room for a while. But I'm kind of in a hurry, Dobby." Dobby looked especially aggrieved at this. Harry paused, and added, "Tell you what, why don't you meet us all there, Dobby? I just have to gather a few more things, then I'll be right there."

Dobby smiled brightly, snapped his fingers and was gone.

Normally Harry would have felt guilty for telling such a lie, but right now he didn't care. Siren was all that he could think about. Normally, Harry would've been in his right mind, and would have seen Siren for the evil temptress that she was. Normally Harry would have been able to put the pieces together and figure out what Siren was really up to. But enchantresses were powerful beauties for a reason. Their charms were always used for their own selfish, conniving purposes. Of course Siren could control her enchantments. After all, she was the very powerful heir of Slytherin, and much smarter than she appeared to be, which was saying a lot. And of course, her enchantments had allowed her to gain the trust of everyone she met. It went without saying that Siren was the clever death eater that Voldemort had positioned at Hogwarts. Too bad nobody told Harry all of this. Then again, no one even knew it was so, except for the death eaters, who had all been in on the plan. Voldemort had been planning this for a long time, and Siren was to be rewarded for her major part in the scheme...

For, you see, Siren had known for as long as she could remember that she was the heir of Slytherin. Her mother never let her forget it. _We live because you are strong_, her mother would always tell her. _We live because you're strong enough to keep the aurors away. Keep your inherited strength, my Siren, and the Ministry will never hurt us. Be a true Slytherin, and we will stay alive._

Ever since her mother first said that to her, Siren had done her very best to be on good terms with the Ministry of Magic, for she feared that if they ever discovered her mother's loyalty to Voldemort, they would kill Siren and her mother. And so, after years of 'helping' the Ministry of Magic to foil Voldemort's plans; after years of 'hating' her grandfather, she and her mother kept their true intentions secret. They were both, by blood or otherwise, family to Voldemort. He had treated them both very well before his first encounter with Harry Potter, and Siren would never forget that. As well, Voldemort was one of the few important figures in the wizarding world who had treated her mother fairly, despite her muggle parents. Voldemort never looked upon Raven Kozlovski as a mudblood. She had always tried her best to earn his respect after all, willingly killing off her own muggle family, as well as other pesky mudbloods. To Voldemort, and to all of the death eaters, she was on them.

When Voldemort rose again, Siren went to him as soon as she could, and since then they had been planning the whole thing out. They would take back Salazar's castle, then Hogwarts, and finally the rest of the world. But how were they to accomplish all of this? They knew they could not do it on their own, so they came up with an even better plan: using Siren's good reputation with the Hogwarts staff (which she had spent many years using her enchantments to achieve), she would attend Hogwarts, and eventually seduce Mr Potter, leading him straight into Voldemort's fatal hands. They would then use Harry's inherited Gryffindor powers to conquer their enemies. Once the world was theirs, they would dispose of Harry. 

Of all their plan, there was one thing that must be understood: Harry had been told many lies that year, mostly by Siren, and all other false information was somehow related to Siren and her mother's fraudulent tales received by the Ministry after the fall of the death eaters. Siren had told Snape many lies about the death eaters after the rise of Voldemort the previous summer, for she had always known that he was a spy. She sent him on wild goose chases, making him believe untrue things, such as that Lucius Malfoy held the top spot among the death eaters. In truth, Malfoy had become the lowest ranking death eater, only because nobody trusted him. The top spot was instead reserved for Charles Nott. He wasn't really dead, nor did Siren hate him. In fact, the Notts were also a big part of Voldemort's strategy. Not only did they help Siren to distract the Ministry of Magic, but they also helped for everyone to feel sorry for her. In order for Siren to gain trust, she first had to look weak, afraid, tortured, and innocent. Hunter was more than glad to help her with that, as was Andreala. Conclusively, Andreala was not resurrected, nor had she ever been so. Andreala was simply Siren in disguise. During the quidditch game, Siren had hoped to kill Harry, for she thought that he wasn't to be manipulated by her. By that time, Siren had used many charms on Harry, all of which, to Siren, didn't seem to be working. Though Harry refrained himself from hating her, he was not being wrapped around her finger as she had wanted him to be. After disappearing as Andreala, she quickly came up with a new scheme – she would act as an enemy to both Andreala and Voldemort, telling the Ministry false tales of her grandfather's plans to use the Yfel to kill Harry once and for all. Voldemort, reassuringly, did have possession of the Yfel, but he had no plans whatsoever to kill Harry. Not yet.

Siren also came up with many falsehoods about Voldemort wanting Harry on his side. All that Sirius had told Harry about the Slytherin-Gryffindor conflict was true. Unfortunately, Harry thought that Siren's story seemed more believable, and it did, with the help of a little enchantment.

Only two things had really gone wrong with Siren's plans; the aurors had discovered that Siren's mother was a death eater, and she had been killed for it. The worst thing to go wrong, however, was on Christmas morning. Voldemort's letter to Siren, which was intended to be received and read alone, had arrived early, thus putting Siren in a very uneasy situation. Even worse, Siren had forgotten to fetch the letter after breakfast, leaving it for the house elves to discover. Only a few of them had read it, excluding Dobby, and they had brought it to Dumbledore as fast as they could. Dumbledore had read it, but before he was finally able to uncover Siren's plans, the Bullsworth potion kicked in, allowing for Siren to act quickly in wrapping up the act, and finally getting Harry on her side. Indeed she had barely escaped a frightful confrontation with Dumbledore, Sirius, Lupin, Snape, and eventually Harry.

Siren stood in the washroom wherein dwelled Moaning Myrtle. She was right next to the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets. She looked into the mirror and for a minute forgot who she was. She stared at herself, but saw someone else. She saw Andreala Durmstrang, not Siren Slytherin.

_Andreala gave it all up for love_, she thought to herself. Perhaps she could do the same with Hunter. Her grandfather never liked Hunter very much. Not since he became involved with the Dark Lord's granddaughter, at least. Voldemort had always tried to convince Siren that she could do much better. He had tried to persuade her into letting Draco Malfoy court her, for he was not as distrustful as his father. Siren laughed at the mere thought of spending her life with Draco. He was far too arrogant – very much like his father in Siren's eyes. She despised all of the Malfoys. But Hunter...

"And what are _you_ doing in here?" rang a voice in the bathroom. Siren turned around to find herself face-to-face with Moaning Myrtle.

"Go away," Siren said to her frigidly.

"Ooh," squealed Myrtle, "is someone in a bad mood? How wonderful. Now you know how I feel most of the ti-"

"GO AWAY," Siren said loudly. "I have no tolerance for little ghost girls."

Myrtle, however, smiled. She much liked the idea that she was causing someone grief.

"Temper, temper, temper," Myrtle said in a sing-song voice. "Tell us what you're upset about, why don't you?"

"I'm not upset," Siren replied, choking back her pent up anger. She hadn't been able to let out her negative emotions since she the summertime, when she and Voldemort had killed the Dursleys. Needless to say she was becoming a little restless.

"I heard about your mum," Myrtle smiled. "What an awful death. Those aurors certainly did a number on her."

"What would you know about my mother's death?" Siren scowled.

"I've heard those two aurors talking about it," Myrtle replied sourly. "It sounded absolutely dreadful, too, if you must know."

"What two aurors?" Siren asked quickly. "Sirius and Remus??"

"Yes, that's them alright," Myrtle giggled. "I left the bathroom last week to look around the empty school. I rarely ever leave my stall. As I was floating through the walls, I saw them. They were with the Headmaster, talking about your mommy-"

"Did they say who did it?" Siren asked, walking closer to Myrtle, who had by then floated closer to the stalls.

"Oh yes," Myrtle smiled, though she did not say who it was. 

Siren waited a moment for an answer. "Well?!" she yelled. "Who?!"

Myrtle looked long an hard at Siren with an enormous, almost triumphant smile upon her face. "They did, of course," she replied. "Someone else helped them, too. I forget his name, though."

"Kurt van der Rohe?" Siren asked, her voice like ice.

"Yes, that was his name," Myrtle replied with a grin and a giggle. "But you needn't ask me about it. Ask him." She pointed to the door of the washroom. Siren turned around.

"You nearly got away with it all," Dumbledore said sternly. He blocked the entrance, and looked at Siren with an angered, yet mournful face.

Siren, however, tried to maintain her innocence. Thunder boomed outside. The storm that had started earlier that night was getting closer. Lightning flashed violently outside the castle, and snow mixed with hail crashed against the beautiful stained-glass windows of the bathroom.

"Got away with what?" Siren asked calmly. She took a few steps briskly towards Dumbledore. "Albus, is something wrong?" She tried her hardest to look concerned, or somewhat sincere.

Dumbledore pointed his wand directly at her. She looked at it warily, and froze in her spot. The soft, angelic singing Dumbledore had heard ever since Siren turned to look at him grew louder in his mind. He saw Siren in a ray of light, her soft skin making her look like a porcelain doll. She was an angel. He knew that she was innocent. This child was nothing like her Slytherin ascendents.

"Albus?" Siren's heavenly voice called out. "What's wrong?"

Dumbledore slowly put down his wand. "I'm so sorry, Siren," he said, his voice full or remorse.

Dumbledore had never known such sorrow. He fell to his knees, looking up at Siren. His old, caring, forlorn face looked to the ground in shame. He felt so guilty. How could he have ever thought Siren to be evil? He was utterly disgusted with himself.

"Oh, you've really done it now, Ridge!" Myrtle gasped. Dumbledore turned to look at the ghost. She, like Siren, was pitiful. He began to reminisce about when Myrtle was a live student at Hogwarts. She was bullied, picked on, and unpopular. He wasn't phased when Siren walked closer. She held his hand in hers, gently taking away his wand. "I forgive you," she whispered. "I know you'd never really suspect me like that. You'd never let me be in danger. You've always been protective over me, like a real grandfather."

Words couldn't describe how touched he was by Siren's last words. "I always wanted you to have a better family," Dumbledore replied to her softly. "You deserve better than to have Voldemort as-"

"Give him back his wand, Siren."

Dumbledore turned his head to look behind him. Looking up he saw a woman. She was shadowed by Siren's radiance and purity. He didn't know who it was, and he nearly didn't care. Siren was afraid, he could feel it. He had to protect her against this dark, shadowy woman.

"Don't let her hurt me," Siren whispered to him, her beautiful voice trembling. "Don't let her come near me...grandfather."

Dumbledore turned to Siren. He still held her hand. He had to protect her. She put his wand back into his right hand. He knew what he had to do.

"Uh oh..." Myrtle smiled, floating closer towards the entrance.

Dumbledore stood up, and pointed his wand at the silhouette of the woman.

"Albus?" the woman said, sounding worried. "What are you doing? Albus?" The voice sounded familiar. Dumbledore knew who it was.

"Don't let her hurt me," Siren said again. "Please, grandfather, don't let her hurt me."

"I won't," Dumbledore replied quietly. He gripped his wand tightly.

"Albus?" the silhouette continued. "Albus, what has she done to you?!"

Dumbledore didn't listen to her pleas. "I'm sorry, Minerva," he said. "I can't let you hurt her."

McGonagall finally understood the situation, and grabbed for her wand, but it was too late.

"Stupefy!" Dumbledore's mighty voice bellowed throughout the halls. McGonagall fell backwards, landing softly on the ground. Dumbledore looked at her limp body, though it was still a shadow. The singing grew louder and sweeter as time passed. If she asked it of him, Dumbledore would've killed McGonagall in order to make Siren feel even a little bit safer.

"I'm safe now," he heard Siren say. Dumbledore believed her, and he felt very pleased with himself. He had made up for his ignorant accusations. He had saved her, but now there was another shadow approaching.

"That's enough, Siren!" the shadow said, and this time it was a man's voice. Before Dumbledore could even think twice to stop it, the shadow pointed his wand at Siren. "Petrificus Totalus!" it said loudly. Siren stood up straight, her eyes looking right at Dumbledore. Dumbledore turned to face her and saw her falling, helpless. He would kill whoever did that to her.

Siren fell to the ground, unable to move. The enchantment was broken. Dumbledore came back to his senses. He looked behind himself, and felt a great swell of sorrow for what he had just done. "Severus?" he said. There stood Snape, no longer a shadow, his wand still pointed at Siren.

"Are you in your right mind, sir?" Snape asked Dumbledore cautiously, without taking his eyes or wand away from Siren's stiff body.

The headmaster looked down at Siren. Her present stillness made her look even more like a beautiful porcelain doll. Just as soon as it had appeared, the storm outside began to pass. Snow was falling lightly, and the thunder and lightning ceased.

"She's more powerful than I thought," Dumbledore sighed. "Or perhaps I'm losing my touch. You didn't seem to be affected at all, Severus."

"Her powers were fully bent on you, sir," Snape replied calmly, though obviously bewildered. Dumbledore nodded, and looked at Siren's still body.

"I must admit, " he said to Snape, "I don't know what to do with her now that she's been stopped. A dementor-free Azkaban would do no good. The Ministry can't contain her-'

"You could kill her," piped in Moaning Myrtle. "I've been dying for a roommate."

"The Dark Lord wouldn't stand for it," Snape continued, as though he hadn't heard Myrtle. "He won't let her be contained. He'll save her somehow."

"And death wouldn't be the answer either, Myrtle," Dumbledore added, looking at the ghost. "I would never kill a child, nor ask for one to be killed. As well, Lord Voldemort's wrath would be far too great if she was to be lost to him forever. He's already lost a son and daughter-in-law to the Ministry, I've assumed. It's too great a risk."

"Perhaps you should see to Minerva, Headmaster, sir," said Snape, who still hadn't taken his eyes off of Siren. "I'll make sure that Siren's doesn't stir."

  


*****

  


And so it was that the Hogwarts staff had foiled yet another one of Siren's plans. Voldemort was to be furious when he got word of it, and so was Harry.

Harry, who in the meantime had been waiting for Siren in her classroom, still had his things packed and was ready to go. The fact that he was about to join forces with his archenemy didn't seem to phase him at all. On the contrary, he was almost happy to do it. It was what Siren wanted. He's do anything for her with a smile on his face.

Harry was looking out the window as he sat on Siren's desk; the desk where only hours prior he had made love to Siren in the happiest moment of his life. He stared out the window, past the distant mountains, in hopes of seeing even the tip of Salazar's Castle. Even a vision of it would have satisfied him. His hopes were in vain. He only saw the distant, looming mountains, their tips drowned in the dark clouds which now consumed the sky.

"Harry," said a voice from behind.

Harry whipped himself around. There stood Krum at the door to the classroom.

"Harry, the Headmaster vants to see you," Krum added slowly. Harry noticed the panic in his voice.

Harry was trying to come up with some good excuses for being alone in Siren's classroom. He had to wait for Siren. He couldn't go to see Dumbledore, not now. 

"Actually, Viktor," Harry replied, digging into his back pocket. He grabbed his wand firmly, just in case...in case he's have to take care of Krum. Harry hesitated, then continued, "I, um...could you tell Dumbledore I'll see him in a bit? I'm kinda busy right now."

"It's urgent," Krum replied quickly. "It's about Siren."

Harry heart fluttered at the mere mention of her. There was something unsettling about the way in which Krum had just said her name, though.

"Is she alright?" Harry asked nervously.

"She's alvright," Krum replied. "Harry, you should vreally come and see it all."

Harry didn't think twice. Siren was in trouble, he knew it. Harry would do anything to help her, absolutely anything.

Krum lead Harry to where Dumbledore and Siren were, Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. As Harry approached it, he saw both Sirius and Lupin. They, however, did not see him. They were too busy keeping an eye on whatever was on the floor.

"What are they guarding?" Harry asked Krum, yet walking away from him without waiting for an answer. 

"Sirius," Harry said when he was close enough. "What's going on? Krum said that Dumbledore wanted me-"

Harry stopped dead in his tracks. Siren was on the ground, still as ice, while Sirius , Lupin, and Snape each had a wand pointed directly at her.

"What-"

"Harry, there's something that you need to know about Siren," said Sirius.

"What did you do to her?" Harry asked coldly.

"She's on Voldemort's side, Harry," Lupin added.

"What did you do to her?" Harry asked again. He reached into his back pocket. He held on to his wand, but didn't pull it out. Not yet. There was a reasonable explanation for this. There had to be.

"Harry, listen to me," Sirius continued. "Siren's been using us all. She's been lying to everyone hear ever since Voldemort rose again, and she's been lying to the Ministry for years. She's on her grandfather's side, Harry, not ours-"

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!" Harry yelled. He took our his wand and pointed it only half an inch away from Sirius's head.

"I put a petrifying charm on her," Snape answered him calmly. He didn't seem very phased at Sirius's imminent danger, nor did he seem to care about Harry's sudden outburst of anger. "When she wakes, we will give her a truth serum, then we'll all see where her loyalties truly lie."

Truth serum? Harry couldn't let that happen. She would tell them too much. She'd tell them about being intimate with Harry. She'd tell them about the Bullsworth Potion. She'd tell them about their plans to join Voldemort. Harry would go to Azkaban for it, and so would Siren. Harry couldn't let her be locked away. It wasn't what she deserved.

"You're wrong about her," Harry said aloud.

"Put your wand down, Harry," said Sirius, a slight note of panic in his voice.

"After you," Harry replied serpentinely. "All of you. Put down your wands. Leave her alone."

Sirius and Lupin both put down their wands. Snape, however, did not.

"Potter," Snape said silkily," Professor Dumbledore will be most displeased with you when he returns from the hospital wing."

"She hurt him?" Harry laughed. "Well, it serves him right."

"He's fine," Sirius replied, looking at Harry, his face screwed up, trying to find out what was wrong with Harry. "Harry, what's gotten into you?" he asked worriedly. "Put your wand down. I'm your godfather, for goodness sake, why would you want to hurt me?"

Harry ignored him. "Why's Dumbledore in the hospital wing, then?"

"Professor McGonagall was injured," Lupin answered, trying to sound calm. "Harry, put down your wand."

"No." Harry looked at Snape. "Wake her up," he told him, "she doesn't deserve this. She's too...too special...to be put through this..." Harry's voice trailed off as he looked upon Siren. He was entranced by her, though she wasn't even awake. 

"Don't be foolish, Potter," replied Snape in a tone which implied that he was on the brink of releasing Siren from the charm as well. "Siren's got you under an enchantment. She's been enchanting us all from the first time we've met her."

"She's innocent," Harry retorted, now pointing his wand at Snape. "The ministry of Magic should be punished. They killed her parents, and now they want to kill her."

"Her parents were death eaters," Sirius replied gently, as though not wanting to provoke Harry's anger any further. Snape now had his wand pointed right back at Harry, daring him to try anything.

"They were innocent," Harry snapped back. "It was lousy aurors like you two," he looked at Sirius and Lupin, "who wrongly killed them. They were innocent." Harry looked down again at Siren. She laid but a few feet away from him. She was so close, and yet so far away. "They would've been better off as death eaters, though, I suppose," Harry added bitterly.

"Really?" Snape asked coolly. "How so?"

Harry laughed wickedly at Snape, and answered, "Do you really think that you all stand a chance against Voldemort? None of you do! He'll kill you all! Siren and I are smarter than that. We're going to be spared. He'll show us mercy. He'll show you mercy, too, if you'd only join him!"

The others said nothing. All that could be heard was Moaning Myrtle sobbing in her stall (Snape had said something unkind to her only minutes before Harry had arrived).

"You plan to join him?" Sirius finally asked in disbelief. "Harry, are you insane?"

Harry laughed at this as well. "Insane?" He repeated. "No. In fact, joining is the sane thing to do. You're the ones who've lost your marbles. You're fighting a losing battle."

"Voldemort killed your parents!" Sirius yelled at him. "Harry, listen to yourself! Voldemort's tried to kill you more than five times! Do you honestly think that he'll want you on his side? It's a trap, Harry!"

"Siren wouldn't lie to me," Harry replied quickly, as though reassuring himself of it. "She wouldn't put me in danger-"

"Your parents would be ashamed of you, Harry," said Sirius, who was breathing deeply and shaking his head in frustration.

Harry put down his wand. "My parents were fools," he replied simply. "Ask Snape. I'm sure he'd agree."

"Yes, they were," Snape replied darkly. He still had his wand pointed at Harry. "Fools for giving up their lives for you. Their sacrifices were obviously in vain." Everyone remained silent after this for quite some time. Sirius stared blankly at Siren, not looking up at any of the others.

"I suppose that was foolish of them," Lupin said, breaking the silence. "They may as well have let Voldemort get to you so that he could show his...mercy, did you say?"

Things were indeed starting to make more sense now for Harry. He bit his lips nervously, then looked to Siren. He felt Sirius put a hand on his shoulder. Harry looked up at him. "I – I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I don't know what came over me."

"It's not your fault," Sirius responded. "Siren's obviously been working very hard on you."

Harry's knees felt weak. He was sick with himself. He was sick with Siren, too. She had used him. He thought that she had loved him, or at least liked him and cared about him. It was all a lie. He was so angry. He should've realized it all sooner. Why had he been so stupid? He had made such a fool of himself.

"So," Harry asked, "what happens now?"

"Ve should go see Professor Dumbledore," said Krum. Harry nearly jumped. He hadn't noticed that Krum was right beside him the whole time.

"I agree," Sirius added. "He'll do a better job at explaining things to you, Harry."

"Right," Harry replied. His brain was numb. His scar burned a bit now each time he glanced upon Siren. Then, he noticed it: a tiny black skull on Siren's right forearm.

"She's one of them," Harry muttered to himself. He saw Snape wince a bit. His dark mark must have been burning, too.

"He's calling the death eaters," Snape said to Sirius and Lupin, suddenly ignoring any rivalry or conflicts they had with each other. "He knows something's happened."

"We'll have to act quick," Lupin replied gravely. "Harry, go get Professor Dumbledore. Tell him we need to speak with him. We'll all explain things to you right after we figure out what to do with Siren."

Harry simply nodded. He turned on his heels to leave.

"Viktor, stay here," Sirius told Krum. "We'll need as many wands on her as possible until Dumbledore gets here. If she awakes for any reason, a simple disarming or petrifying charm should do the trick to knock her out again. It's also important not to look at her a lot if she does awake, for it only enhances the enchantments-"

Harry was soon out of ear shot. He found himself running as fast as he could to the hospital wing. He saw a troll mumbling to itself in one of the corridors. It was almost a comfort to know that Voldemort didn't have all of the trolls on his side yet. Some were still helping to guard most of Hogwarts, though Harry hadn't seen many of them for months now. They must've stopped for a while, and then started guarding again once the school had shut down. He skidded to a stop in front of the entrance to the hospital wing. He opened the doors and, and without really looking, bumped right into someone standing near the entrance. It was the auror that had escorted Harry, Ron, and Hermione to Platform 93/4 at the beginning of the year.

"Sorry," Harry said dully, walking briskly past the man. He had to find Dumbledore. Harry shivered as he glimpsed behind each curtain. It was unusually cold in the castle now that Winter had reached it deepest frost that year. Harry was still breathing hard from his flight up to the wing. He could see his steamy breath in front of him. Finally, reaching the bed furthest away from the hospital entrance, Harry spotted Professor McGonagall. 

"Professor," Harry gasped. McGonagall was very pale and ill-looking. A grave face was painted across her normally stern expression. "Are you alright?"

"Quite fine, Potter," she tried to say happily, but failing. 

Harry looked at her for a bit longer before asking, "Did Siren hurt you?"

McGonagall nodded. "Yes," she replied, "She was the cause of it."

"I'm glad you're here, Harry." Dumbledore stood behind Harry, looking down upon him with pity. "I must speak with you," he added.

"But Professor-"

"It cannot wait any longer, Harry," Dumbledore replied quickly. "There is something that I must show you."

"But sir," Harry said quickly, "Sirius said he needs you. They think that Voldemort knows about-"

"Trust me, Harry," Dumbledore interrupted, a small smile appearing on his old, though still charismatic face. His eyes had regained their sparkle which had been missing for months. "Sirius and the others can wait. What I'm about to show you will forever change what we know about the battle between the Slytherin and Gryffindor families."

Two men had gathered behind Dumbledore as he said this. One was quite tall with light brown hair. He wore black robes with a silver sash tied around his waist. He looked no older than about 30 years old. Though very attractive, there was something unnerving about his face – the left side of it was full of deep, long scars.

The other man had red hair, freckles, and a bright smile towards Harry. It was Charlie Weasley.

"Charlie?" Harry asked, and a smile uncontrollably spread across his face. "What are you doing here?"

Charlie's smile began to fade. Harry could tell that he was worried. "I'm so sorry, Harry," he said. "I know I'm too late."

"Too late?" Harry asked, furrowing his eyebrows. "Too late for what?"

Charlie sighed. He looked at Dumbledore.

"We should explain this elsewhere," Dumbledore said quietly. "You should rest, Minerva."

"I'm alright, Albus," McGonagall replied, frustrated. "I don't know why Poppy's keeping me here. You'll need my help, after all."

"She' right," the tall man standing next to Charlie said. "We will need her help with Siren."

"Yes," Dumbledore said, trying kindly to smile as he looked upon McGonagall. "Later. Not now. Rest, Minerva."

McGonagall sighed heavily and looked as though she wanted to argue. Instead, she nodded her head. in compliance. "Go on then," she said, briskly shooing them away with her hand. "Discuss the matter elsewhere."

With one last look at McGonagall, Harry was lead out of the hospital wing by Dumbledore, Charlie, and the tall man. They walked to an empty corridor not far from the wing, where Dumbledore came to a stop. A painting behind Harry of a Greek goddess stared at them all, but remained still and silent.

"This corridor should be suitable," Dumbledore said aloud to them all. "Nobody seems to be around."

The painting behind Harry coughed loudly, as though to gain attention. Dumbledore looked at it and smiled. "Except you, Hecate," he added. "I'm sure you won't repeat our conversation to anyone."

Hecate winked at him reassuringly. Dumbledore smiled again, then turned his attention back to Harry. "Harry," he said, "I'd like to introduce you to Kurt van der Rohe."

The tall man extended his hand to Harry. "Pleased to meet you, Mr Potter," he said, shaking Harry's hand.

"Yeah," Harry replied, still looking at the man, though mainly at his scarred face. "You, too."

Charlie spoke up. "Harry, Kurt and I work together," he said, "and before he tells you what he came here to tell you, there's something you should know."

Charlie, Harry noticed, look very uneasy.

"Well," Charlie continued, "over the summer, a co-worker and I were sent to Moscow to deal with an unfriendly Ukranian Ironbelly dragon that had taken over a small building. Other Russian Ministry of Magic members were there, dealing with the muggles who had witnessed the dragon. It had to be the largest amount of memory charmwork I've ever seen. Anyways, the Russian Ministry of Magic had asked that any local wizards would help to keep the whole deal secret to the other muggles in Moscow. Some were in the building's lower levels, making sure no other muggles walked in. I had gone down to the buildings first floor to see if I could find a water fountain, I mean, battling dragons really wipes you out. Anyways, while I was down there, I ran into a young lady named Siren. She gave me the rest of her water, then offered to help me with the dragon. She was unusually strong for her age. She told me she was a Hogwarts graduate, and was studying to become an auror. Eventually we got the dragon under control and sent it back to its home forest in Ukraine. I stayed in Moscow that night, though. Siren said she used to live there, and agreed to show me around. So...one thing led to another, and..." Charlie began to blush a bit.

"You slept with Siren?!" Harry yelled angrily. "Charlie, how could you? She lied! She's only fifteen!"

"Harry," Charlie laughed uneasily, "no, I didn't touch her. Even though I thought she was older, I didn't touch her. I mean, she tried, but...I have my eyes on a woman who works in Muggle Relations," he trailed off. Sighing, he continued, "Anyways, I noticed that she had a certain, er...charm to her. I mean, I was hearing singing and everything. I thought it was a little odd. She was still angry that I had rejected her when I asked her about it. Her eyes literally turned red, and she said that if I said anything about what had happened that night, she would kill me, and she would kill my family. _They're bodies will rest in ashes_, she told me. _Tell anyone and you'll never see them again._ Obviously, I didn't speak a word about it for quite some time. Not until about a month ago." Charlie looked to Kurt. "I was in Romania," he continued, "tackling a Norwegian Ridgeback with Kurt. When we had it calmed down, an owl flew next to me. It was Erol, and he had a letter for me from my mum. She always sent me at least one letter a week. So anyways, this one had news about Ron, Fred, George, and Ginny's schooling. She knows that I like being up to date with how well they're doing. She stated that Ron had written to her at the beginning of the school year, saying that his Dark Arts teacher, Siren Ridge, was an enchantress, and the heir of Slytherin."

Harry sighed loudly. He had told Ron and Hermione not to tell anyone about Siren's lineage.

"Oh, don't worry, Harry," Charlie smiled at him. "Ron knew that mum wouldn't tell anyone who wasn't family." He swallowed loudly, then continued. "Things were making sense to me about Siren. I knew that she must have been related to You-Know-Who. Mum's letter said that Ron described her as being really nice. I knew otherwise, of course. I was obviously afraid for you all at Hogwarts, so I thought I should tell someone. I didn't know whether or not to tell Ministry officials, but I had to tell someone. Kurt was a few feet away from me at that time, and saw that I had been upset. He asked what was wrong, and, well, I told him everything."

Harry was becoming restless. He looked at Dumbledore. "How exactly does this affect the battle of the heirs?" he asked.

"I should answer that, Harry," Kurt piped in. He looked at Harry. "Harry," he continued, "I was shocked to find out that Miss Ridge was the heir of Slytherin. It made me rethink my own ancestry, in fact."

"And why is that?" Harry asked him, still obviously flummoxed.

"Because," he said, "I had always thought that there was only one heir, but there's not. There's two."

Harry looked at him suspiciously. _ What is he getting at?_ Harry though to himself himself. "Who else?" Harry asked quietly, though he already knew the answer.

Kurt took a deep breath, and bluntly replied, "Me."

Harry nodded his head. He wasn't very surprised. By now he was so used to surprises to even give a damn about what Kurt had just said.

"Alright," Harry said again, "what does this have to do with the battle of the heirs?"

"It can be over," Kurt replied, a little disappointed at Harry's lack of enthusiasm. "The conflict between our families can be over, if we only get Siren and Voldemort out of the way."

Harry laughed at that. "Good luck," he said. "And why should I trust you? I trusted Siren, after all. That went over well, didn't it?" Harry could feel anger building up inside of him. 

"Harry," Kurt tried to reason with him, "sometimes our experiences or upbringing affect who we become. Voldemort's experiences created his evil self. Siren was raised by a death eater. I, on the other hand, have lived a relatively normal and productive life. I most certainly am not one of Voldemort's pawns."

"Well, you certainly say his name freely enough to be on his good side," Harry retorted, "just like the other heir."

"Now Harry," Dumbledore interrupted, "Many people aren't afraid to name Voldemort. You do it. I do it. Sirius does it. It does not make us his followers."

"But we've had dealings with him," Harry spat. He looked angrily upon Kurt. He had trusted Siren and her conniving ways. He was sure not to do the same with Kurt. "Who dealings could you have possibly had with him?! You work with dragons, for fuck's sake."

Kurt's temper was also rising. "Yes, and you're a fifteen year-old schoolboy, but do I judge you by that?" he asked darkly.

"Voldemort killed my parents!" Harry yelled back at him. His hands, which had gradually formed into fists, were now shaking with anger.

"He killed my wife!" Kurt said crossly. "Believe it or not, Harry, other people have suffered from Voldemort's reign of terror, not just you!" Kurt's eyes, the only area of his face which seemed to be fully unscathed, were quickly filling with tears. Harry remained silent.

"And where do you think I got these scars from?" Kurt asked Harry, pointing to his own face. "These are from the death eaters that kidnaped my wife last summer before Voldemort murdered her. These are what I got for trying to save her." His face was now drenched in tears. Harry remained still and silent. He ran his hand through his hair, feeling his hand brush past his scar as he did so. Harry couldn't imagine what it must be like to have a face full of those things. Harry's stomach felt like it was having seizures. He was so sick with himself. Why was he acting like such a martyr around Kurt? And why was he acting like a jerk to everyone he cared about? First he threatened Sirius, then he called his parents fools, and now he was accusing a man he didn't even know of being as twisted as Siren. Harry felt so low.

  


*****

  


"So, what will happen to Siren now?"

Harry was now in Dumbledore's office with the Headmaster, Sirius, Lupin, and Snape. Charlie and Kurt had both been called back to work. Apparently a dragon had made its way into Transylvania, and was killing quite a few muggles, which was the worst case scenario in Charlie and Kurt's line of work.

"I don't know, Harry," Dumbledore replied, handing a cup of tea to Harry. The sun was slowly creeping over the horizon. About 30 aurors had arrived at Hogwarts and took over watching Siren, who was still in a petrified state.

"Where's Viktor?" Harry asked, sipping his tea. He looked at the window as the first ray of sunlight appeared over the tree line on the horizon.

"He's still with Siren," Sirius answered. He, too, was looking out the window. "He said he wanted to be there in case she wakes up."

"The poor kid still thinks she's innocent," Lupin added grimly. He was staring blankly at the floor. "He keeps making up excuses for it, saying that she's under the Imperius curse and whatnot."

"That isn't a possibility, is it?" Harry asked hopefully.

"Goodness, no," Dumbledore answered him. "The Imperius Curse only lasts about a month or two at the most, Harry, not your entire life."

Harry nodded and took another sip of his tea. "I don't understand it all," Harry admitted, looking back to Dumbledore, who was standing near Fawkes's cage. "How did you find out that she's working for Voldemort?"

Dumbledore sighed and looked at Harry. "By luck," he replied. "The letter Siren had received from her grandfather on Christmas morning explained it all. I'm assuming that Siren didn't expect the letter at that time. What a sticky situation she must have been in. Her plans wouldn't have been foiled, however, had it not been that she'd forgotten the letter, leaving it for the house elves to find as they were cleaning the table."

Harry looked out the window once again. He sipped his tea, and looking back to Dumbledore, he asked, "Is there...is there any chance that Siren's innocent? I mean, there can be other excuses than the Imperius curse."

"Innocent until proven guilty," Dumbledore replied, smiling at Harry. "Soon enough, we'll know the truth. Luckily, Professor Snape always has some Veritaserum ready, in case of any such emergency."

Harry looked to Snape, who was staring unblinkingly at the wall opposite to where he was seated. Harry figured that he was obviously distraught by the entire situation. Snape had, after all, appeared to be very close to Siren. She had even told Snape that he was like a father to her. Whatever feelings of betrayal Harry was feeling must have been somewhat trivial compared to Snape's.

"When are you going to give it to her?" Harry asked, still looking at Snape.

"Whenever Professor Snape is ready," Dumbledore replied quietly, also glancing towards Snape.

"The sooner the better," Sirius added loudly, and quite rudely, knowing that Snape was listening.

Snape looked at Sirius, for once, with a relatively calm expression. "I suppose you're right," he sighed, standing up. He then walked briskly out of the office.

Lupin sighed. "Try to be nicer, will ya?" he said to Sirius after Snape had left. "He's going through a rough time, I'd imagine."

"Remus," Sirius replied, "I'm not too keen on liking or trusting him right now. You know that Severus has been friends with Siren's family ever since he graduated from Hogwarts."

"He has?" Harry asked.

"Yeah," Sirius replied. "He tends to be friendly with a lot of mass murderers."

"He didn't know, Sirius," Dumbledore replied softly. "The Ministry of Magic didn't even know Siren was related to Voldemort until her mother finally told Severus, about two years ago. Their family has a way with concealing their identity. I never even knew that Seth was Voldemort's son, the way he acted when he was here. He was the only Slytherin who seemed to be friendly with muggle-borns."

"Speaking of which," Harry stated, finally remembering that Siren's mother was a muggle-born, "why would Siren's mother be a death eater if she was muggle-born?"

"Who knows," Lupin answered. "I mean, look at Voldemort. He's half-muggle, and his followers don't seem to care."

"And Salazar Slytherin himself was muggle-born," Dumbledore stated, walking over to his desk and sitting down. "No one really knows why the death eaters only accept some muggle-borns as though they were pure-bloods."

"Is Kurt a pureblood?" Harry asked him.

"Indeed he is," Dumbledore replied. "Branching up as far as to Salazar, his family has been of pureblood." 

Harry remained silent for a bit, re-thinking what Kurt had said about Voldemort killing his wife. "Who was his wife?" he asked.

"Her name was Rebecca Steel," Dumbledore replied. "They started dating in their sixth year at Hogwarts, and married right after graduating."

"Was Kurt in Slytherin?" Harry asked. He was hoping that the answer was no.

"He was indeed," Dumbledore replied with a smile. "Both he and Rebecca were in Slytherin. Thought I must say, after their generation graduated, that house has seemed to fall into ruin. The students never used to be so pernicious in Slytherin. Not until about 30 years ago, give or take. It was once a house of nobility, but now..." Dumbledore shook his head and sighed a bit.

Harry, still wanting to know more about Kurt, continued to ask questions. "Did they have any children?" he asked. The sun had fully appeared over the horizon, brightening up the entire room.

"Rebecca was unable to bear children," Dumbledore answered gently. "Although, they were just about to adopt before she passed away."

Harry looked outside again. It was a beautiful morning. It didn't matter, though. Nothing seemed bright enough to shine light upon the situation at Hogwarts. Looking away, Harry asked, in little more than a whisper, "How did she die?"

Dumbledore swallowed, and looked very sadly upon Harry. "She was taken by the death eaters on August 2," he answered solemnly. "Three days later, an owl arrived at Kurt's house, and dropped off a package from Voldemort."

"A package of what?" Harry asked curiously.

"It was a box," Dumbledore replied hesitantly, "and in it were...her remains."

Harry dropped his cup of tea. It didn't shatter, but spilled its contents on to the floor. Sirius, however, with the wave of his wand, cleaned it up.

"That's horrible," Harry finally managed to say. "How could someone be that sick?"

"I don't know," Dumbledore replied quietly.

"It was after that when the Ministry ordered that Hogwarts be under top security," Lupin stated.

"What a great job it's done," Sirius replied sarcastically.

"It would've been better," Lupin said levelly. "Well, we might not have stopped Siren, but Arthur's death could have been prevented if the trolls hadn't left to join Voldemort."

Harry bolted upright in his chair. His heart sank as he spoke. "The trolls left?" He asked worriedly.

Lupin looked at him awkwardly. "They've been gone for a few months now," he replied. "Didn't you notice? We didn't say much about it because we didn't want to startle the students."

But Harry had seen one earlier that night, on his way to the hospital wing. "Then why was one in the school a few hours ago?" Harry asked slowly.

"What?" Lupin asked, seeming more shocked and concerned.

"On my way to the hospital wing," Harry answered cautiously, "I saw one as I passed by the east exit..."

Lupin, Sirius, and Dumbledore all looked at one another with fearful expressions.

"The east exit?" Dumbledore repeated.

"Yeah, it was mumbling to itself..." Harry trailed off as he look outside again. Right outside of Dumbledore's office was a huge green skull with a snake portruding form its mouth. A Dark Mark was pitted against the beautiful morning sky. Harry's scar burned worse than it had for a long time. Dumbledore, Siruis, and Lupin all noticed the green skull as well.

"He's here," Dumbledore said under his breath. "Voldemort has come to Hogwarts."

  


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Dun dun dunnnnnnn. Neehehehehe! Mwaahahahahaahhahahaa! Ahahaha hahha hahahaha! *gets slapped by the readers* Oh come one, like you didn't see something like this coming? :P I hope you liked it. Please review ;)

  
  


-Summer


	16. Voldemort's Favourite

Gah. Sorry this has taken so long. I've been a bit pre-occupied. I've tried to make this one really good, so I hope you all enjoy it. Thanks for taking the time to read my story and to submit reviews :) I really appreciate it.

-Summer

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Harry Potter and the True Heir of Slytherin

Chapter 16 : _Voldemort's Favourite_

  
  


Before any of them, even Dumbledore, had time to react to the shocking news, the sky fell dark. Night had reared it's ugly head, returning with thick, black clouds that now covered the sky. Screams were heard coming from all about Hogwarts, and even from Hogsmeade.

"Harry, come with us," Dumbledore said sternly, standing up. His face was resolute. He looked a man who knew that his time had finally come to face the harsh reality of Voldemort's return. He would have to fight Voldemort now. It was inevitable. "We must inform the aurors before it's too late," Dumbledore added.

"What about Professor Snape?" Harry asked, standing up very shakily and taking his wand out from his back pocket. "What if Voldemort finds him?"

"Who cares," Sirius replied quickly. "He can protect himself, Harry. We have other things to worry about right now."

Harry, despite his loathing of Snape, wanted to argue, but decided better of it. He nodded his head, and the four of them left Dumbledore's office. They were soon searching quickly through each corridor, hoping to find the battle that awaited them.

Harry stopped suddenly. His scar was burning more with each step he took. They must've been getting closer to Voldemort. 

The four briskly made their way down the hallway leading to the hospital wing. They all knew that Dumbledore had to get there before Voldemort or his Death Eaters did. The aurors would help to guard Siren a little bit, but eventually Voldemort and his minions would make their way through, and frankly, Dumbledore was the only hope they had of ensuring that Voldemort would never take Siren away with him. If he couldn't stop Voldemort from bringing her back to the Slytherin Castle, the world was doomed. It was Harry's duty to defeat the heirs of Slytherin, but the heirs of Slytherin had never been this powerful. Harry was only 15. He couldn't do it alone, and neither could Dumbledore. Though nobody wanted to admit it, Voldemort had finally succeeded in becoming more powerful than Dumbledore, and it would take a lot of time, sacrifice, and effort to stop him this time, especially now that he had the Yfel.

Walking up the stairs which lead to the hospital wing, Harry could hear singing...it was beautiful. It made him stop in his tracks. Sirius and Lupin followed suit. Dumbledore, however, carried on up the stairs. Noticing that they weren't following him, he stopped and turned to them. "Pay no attention to it," he told them. "It's obvious that Siren has awoken. She's definitely in the hospital wing now. She won't be able to enchant us all once we're up there. More than 30 aurors, her grandfather, the Death Eaters, and goodness know what else will certainly distract her enchantments."

Harry, Sirius, and Lupin shook their heads of the enchantment, and continued to follow Dumbledore up the stairs. It took mere seconds for them to arrive at the doors. "Wands ready," Dumbledore told them, and he opened the left door. Dumbledore, though very hesitantly, defiantly walked into the room. As soon as the doors had been opened, Dumbledore flew back past Harry, Sirius and Lupin. He was out cold. Harry looked up to the door only to see an enormous troll guarding it, his bat within his hands.

"Stupefy!" Harry, Sirius, and Lupin all shouted, pointing their wands at the troll. Apparently this was enough force to knock the troll backwards, though it didn't knock him out. He did that on his own. Falling backwards, he banged his head on a rather large metal chandelier, and it wasn't too long after that when he fell face-first to the ground. Too pre-occupied by fear to even take notice of the enormous unconscious troll, Harry and Lupin, led by Sirius, ran into the main room of the hospital wing. They stopped short of McGonagall's bed, however, when they saw all that surrounded them. All of the aurors who had been ordered to keep watch on Siren (and Harry noticed that there were in fact more than 50 of them) were spewed out across the floor. Whether they were dead or unconscious, Harry couldn't tell. Siren stood before the three of them, her wand being held firmly by her right hand. No other Death Eaters appeared to be there yet. Siren pointed her wand directly at Sirius, who was ahead of Harry and Lupin, and smiled.

"Clever," she said wickedly, looking in turn to both Lupin and Harry, then back to Sirius. "I almost had you all. It's too bad that you thought these aurors would defeat me. And McGonagall was only too easy to calm down."

She looked to her right, and there, about 5 feet away from Siren laid McGonagall in a pool of blood. She was breathing, and it didn't look like she was injured despite the fact that she wasn't conscious. The blood wasn't hers, as Harry soon realized. It belonged to a pile of witches just behind McGonagall. They all appeared to be stabbed, bloody, and dead.

"Those were aurors, too," Siren said calmly. "Women never give in to my charms, though, so I had to take care of them separately. If Minerva had been at her best, she might be dead, too. She's lucky that she was already injured."

"Siren, give it up," Sirius said to her darkly, he voice giving an uncomfortable and terrified shiver. "You can't play at this for long. It'd be best for you if you just gave up now."

"Best for me?" Siren laughed. "Or best for you?" She walked a bit closer to Sirius. Her long, dark hair seemed to fly as the invisible wind, provided by her enchantments, blew past her. She was wearing a long black dress with flowing arms and black lace embroidered onto it in what appeared to be decorative vines. "I think it'd be best if you three just gave up now," Siren added darkly. Her voice held a tone that Harry had never heard before. It was low, cold, and devilish. "He'd probably spare you if you joined him."

"For how long?" Harry asked angrily, stepping forward. "Until he thinks that he's better off without us? Would he spare us then?!"

"Hmm. Probably not," Siren answered, as though she had just changed her mind. "I guess the only way out would be for you to just die, wouldn't it?" She smiled at Harry, walking closer to him, and held his left hand in hers. Harry wasn't able to let go of her, or to even pull away from her. For a moment he remembered how she had held him the night prior. She had loved him, and he had loved her more than anything. She still loved him. He knew it. She wasn't going to let him be hurt, not after all that they had been through. She held his hand tighter. It began to hurt. Still, though, she loved him. There wasn't a doubt in Harry's mind. The bones in his hand began to crack, but Harry didn't even flinch. He could barely feel it. All he felt was love for her, and love from her in return. "He might be merciful to you, however," Siren added softly, though there was no missing the sadism in her voice. "After all, did I not show you mercy last night? I could have killed you, but I didn't. I decided to play nice and give you a good time before I handed you over to the boss." Harry could feel the bones in his hand breaking. He pulled away. The world which had for a moment, just like the night before, stood still, suddenly sprang to life. Every worry, ache, and fear that Harry had felt before Siren had enchanted him for that brief moment came flooding back to him. The noises around him became much louder than they had been; much more real. Everything came back to life. He saw Siren for what she really was. She looked up at him, smiling evilly, then stepped away. He looked behind him. Both Sirius and Lupin were on the floor. Siren must have done something to them while enchanting Harry. They were both unconscious, or at least Harry hoped that they were only unconscious...

"They'll be fine," Siren assured him, though Harry began to doubt every word that she spoke. She was made of lies, he thought. Filthy, evil lies.

"My grandfather's coming," she whispered anxiously, obviously anticipating the reunion between Voldemort and Harry. "You won't escape. You won't survive it this time."

Harry found that last phrase very familiar. Voldemort, or someone that looked like Voldemort, had told him that in one of his dreams. 

"Those were all you," Harry said finally. He pointed his shaking finger at her. "Those dreams I had...they were all you!" 

Siren laughed smugly. "Of course they were," she replied, as though it should have been obvious to Harry.

"Why?" Harry yelled. "Why did you give nightmares to me if you only wanted to seduce me??"

Siren laughed in reply, then looked at Harry. He finally noted how very cold her face was. She looked like a possessed doll, the scary kind that might've appeared in some muggle horror movie. "I like to have fun with my victims," she replied cooly. "Sometimes it makes the experience more worthwhile if you let them know ahead of time what they might really be in for..." Siren trailed off as someone entered the huge room. Harry whipped himself around. He suddenly took notice of his scar, which had been paining him for hours now. It burned more than ever as he looked upon the one standing at the door. It was Voldemort. 

Harry felt utterly hopeless. He couldn't see Dumbledore anymore. Voldemort stood in the way. Sirius, Lupin, McGonagall - they all couldn't help him now. Harry was alone and defenseless. He had escaped Voldemort once before...but Voldemort was still weak the last time Harry had seen him. He was almost back from the dead last time, and yet still able to kill. Harry could only imagine what he was like now with possession of the Yfel. __

_I'm done for, _Harry thought to himself.

"Harry," said Voldemort. His voice was not a hiss, but a low, confident one. He looked different from when Harry had last seen him. No longer very snake-like, Voldemort now looked like the man from Harry's dream that Siren had just quoted. He sort of looked like Salazar. In fact, their resemblance was uncanny. Goodness knows what transformations he had gone through over the past six months. All that Harry knew was that Voldemort was stronger, smarter, and more cunning than ever. And as Harry continued to gawk at him, he noticed something very shiny just below Voldemort's neck...the Yfel. It shone brightly on its own, even more beautiful than it had been in the Polaroids.

"I thought that you might be here," the Dark Lord continued. He walked closer to Harry. Harry watched his every movement, his wand still clutched tightly in his hand. His left hand still burned from Siren's tight grip. He knew that there were broken bones in it. He tried to ignore the pain, however. His right hand was becoming sweaty as it clutched his wand tighter and tighter. Harry very daringly raised it, and pointed it directly at Voldemort's chest.

"Now, really," Voldemort said, obviously amused, though still trying to reason with Harry, "you know that will do you no good." But he was wrong. Harry had thought of something brilliant. If he could only come up with a charm to distract Voldemort while he ripped the Yfel from Voldemort's neck...

With a flick of his wrist, Harry's wand left his hand and went straight into Voldemort's. "Tut tut," Voldemort said slyly. "I wouldn't want you to get any ideas." His evil smirk soon turned into a scowl. "It was difficult enough getting into the school. The last thing I need is for you to luck your way out of death again."

"So get it over with," Harry replied, his voice emotionless. He knew that there was no way out. At least he could die now and spare himself any further pain. Maybe he could become a ghost, and help others after him to defeat Voldemort. Maybe he would go on to whatever other afterlife there may be. Maybe he could be with his parents again. He looked back at Voldemort. The pain from his scar no longer bothered him. He was numb to it now. "Here's your chance to do what you've ben meaning to do for over 14 years," Harry continued blandly. "Kill me."

Voldemort looked down at Harry. He narrowed his eyes, and Harry could tell that he was trying to read his mind. His old face slowly turned to an atrocious expression. After a moment, he smiled, turned his head a bit, and replied very darkly, "I'm not going to give you what you want. I never have, and I never will." His voice, Harry noted, began to sound like more of a hiss. He was just starting to ponder whether or not Voldemort had just spoken to him in Parseltongue when Voldemort slowly walked past Harry to Siren. Siren smiled. She began talking, but what she said to him was drowned out by Harry's own thoughts. Harry was trying to see Dumbledore, but couldn't. He looked out the entrance to the hospital wing, and he saw nothing. Dumbledore wasn't where he had once been laying. For a faint moment, Harry had some hope that maybe Dumbledore had recovered and was preparing to rescue Harry, Lupin, Sirius, and everyone else in mere seconds. Harry waited, and nothing happened. His hopes died. Still feeling very hopeless and pained, he fell to the floor, where he sat looking at Sirius, who was laying only feet away. Harry finally realized how very tired he was. He had been awake for more than 24 hours. Not only did the Bullsworth potion make him 4 hours more tired than he would have been, but he had also spent the entire night awake, dealing with Siren's treachery. His broken left hand in combination with his burning forehead was almost unbearable. He gathered what little strength was now left in him to crawl towards Sirius. He reached out his right arm and touched Sirius' head. "Wake up," he whispered. He pushed Sirius' head a bit harder. "Please wake up!" Harry managed to keep nudging Sirius before his weariness took over. Harry had never felt so tired. Giving Sirius' still head one more gentle push, he passed out.

  


*****

  


It was dark, cold, and quiet when Harry awoke. He didn't know where he was, nor what time it was. Harry's hopes that what had happened had all been a bad dream were in vain as he looked around. He was in a cage, just large enough for him to lie down in. He was in some sort of dungeon, and he could see a few more cages in the room. He tried to see who was in them, but without success. All he saw were lumps of robes. It was too dark to see much else. Harry desperately reached into his back pocket, hoping to find his wand. It wasn't there. Siren had taken it. Harry was just about to say something to the other cages when a bright light shone on him from the right corner of his cage. Harry strained his eyes against it, trying to see who or what it was. Someone was pointing a glowing wand at him.

"One of them's awake," said a female voice. The light went away. Harry could see the outline of a figure, holding her wand at the ready. Suddenly, a few torches were lit, making it easier for things to be seen.

"Not too bright," said another voice, this time a man's. "We don't want the others to wake yet."

Harry turned to look at the man. He didn't recognize him. He was sitting on what looked like some sort of crate. Though not standing, he looked to be tall. He had dark hair, dark eyes, and a striking resemblance to Hunter Nott.

"Perhaps you should get the boss," the female voice said. "He may want Rebecca to see them while they're still weak." Harry noted that this female had an American accent. He turned to look at her. She was a short witch with thick, long brown hair. She was thin and had dazzling green eyes. She looked at Harry calmly. Despite the fact that she was a Death Eater, Harry found her quite attractive, though a little more revealing than was his taste. She wore a tight black top with a black miniskirt, and knee high, black leather boots. "I'll get him," she said to the man. "You watch this little one."

"No, I'll get him, Aavril," the man replied, standing up. "My shift is nearly over anyways."

The girl nodded. The man walked over to the large, wooden door which stood opposite to Harry about 10 feet away. It had large metal knobs and a small, square window at its top. The man opened it, and walked out, locking it behind him as he did.

"Sleep well?" the girl asked Harry with an impish giggle.

"Where am I?" Harry asked, too hopeless to be afraid.

The girl walked a bit closer to Harry's cage. "Take a guess," she replied nastily. "It's a large castle full of Death Eaters. And you didn't answer my question, little boy."

"The Slytherin Castle," Harry said, more to himself than to her. "Is this the Slytherin Castle?"

"You're not answering my question," the girl replied, more harshly this time.

"I'm right, then?" Harry repeated. "This is the Slytherin Castle?"

"That depends, did you sleep well?" the witch replied, as though she were a child fighting with a sibling.

"I slept fine!" Harry yelled back. "Is this the Slytherin Castle?!"

"Well yes it is," the witch replied with a smile. "And be quiet. You'll wake the others."

Harry looked around to the other cages. He could see both Sirius and Lupin, asleep (or so he hoped) in their own cages. What looked like a couple of muggles were on the other side of them, locked up in one larger cage.

"Sirius!" Harry called out, grabbing on to his cage's bars, trying to get out. "Sirius!"

"No need to yell, Harry," said a chillingly familiar voice. He looked to the doorway only to see Lucius Malfoy. He walked confidently towards the cages. He stopped just before Harry's and smiled victoriously. "They shan't awake," he continued, his voice like ice. "We won't let them. Not until Steel gets in."

"Steel?" Harry asked, shaking his cage and trying to get out, though without luck. "What's that?"

"Who," the girl corrected him. "Rebecca Steel...the torturer. She's the Dark Lord's favourite." Both Lucius and the girl laughed a bit at this.

Rebecca Steel? Harry thought. Why did that name sound so familiar?

"The torturer?" Harry spat. The last thing he needed right now was to be tortured. He looked back to Sirius, who was still breathing. Harry wished that he would wake up.

"She should have fun with this lot, too," Lucius continued to the girl, Aavril. "I've heard that Rebecca especially likes muggles."

"Suiting," Aavril replied darkly. "She's descended from them, the nasty mudblood."

"None of that, now," Lucius replied dexterously. "She's been forgiven. She's earned her right to be named a pureblood."

"What do you mean by that?" Harry asked furrowing his eyebrows. This was it. He was finally going to learn why Voldemort and his supporters accepted non-purebloods as their own...

Harry heard thunder. No, it was someone banging on the door. Aavril and Lucius turned their heads to the door's entrance. It was shaking viciously. Someone was in great haste to come inside. Aavril and Lucius both took out their wands and pointed them to the doorway, just in case. 

"Alohamora," Aavril said quietly, and the door's lock lifted up. The door opened inwards slowly on its own. There was a tall, think silhouette in the doorway. It was a girl's figure, with messy, thick hair and a very short dress on. She slowly walked closer. Lucius stared at her as her face became more visible in the darkness of the room. Harry could see her. She was beautiful. She reminded him of Cho, though a bit older. She looked a little intoxicated to Harry, though he had a feeling that there was more to her condition that just that.

"Rebecca, have you spoken with the Master?" asked Aavril. "Did he say whether or not you could kill them off?"

"I don't know," Rebecca replied slowly, staring at Harry. Her eyes were wild and savage. She looked unstable, as though she belonged in a mental ward.

"You must be Rebecca," she said to Harry, her voice low and menacing.

"No, that's Harry Potter," Lucius replied, looking at her oddly. "Your name is Rebecca. Not his."

"I am who I say he is," Rebecca replied quietly, wrapping her arms around herself and shivering a bit. Harry didn't blame her. He'd be cold, too, if he was wearing that dainty dress of hers. "Believe me," she said, loudly this time. She looked to Aavril. "Do you think he likes you more?" she asked. 

Aavril looked apprehensive. "Who?" she asked. "The Dark Lord?"

"All of them!" Rebecca yelled, flailing her arms up in the air. She lowered them and looked to Lucius. "There's a spider on your neck," she said to him, pointing. 

Lucius, without taking his eyes off of her, grabbed at his neck. There was nothing there. "Rebecca, there's no-"

Everyone turned to the door. Lucius and Aavril immediately fell to the ground, groveling. Harry looked to the doorway. There stood Siren. Harry heard no singing this time. He supposed that Siren no longer had any need for enchanting him. She seemed to not notice Harry. She looked directly at Rebecca. Rebecca looked back at her. Hate was present in her face, as well as in Siren's.

"Back again, Steel?" Siren asked, walking closer to her. Siren looked beautiful, as always. Her hair was back in a long, intricate braid. She wore a long, tight dress of pale, shimmery yellow, trimmed in gold. The Yfel was now around her neck. Voldemort must have given it to her to protect her. He obviously cared about her very much.

"I'm always back," Rebecca answered, bowing her head, but looking straight up at Siren. Siren looked down upon her. It was obvious that Siren detested her for some reason. 

"You should leave him alone, you know," Siren finally added calmly, yet clearly angered by something.

"We should leave who alone?" Rebecca asked, taking a few steps back. She put her hands behind her back and fiddled with the strings that tied up her dress around her lower bust.

"My grandfather," Siren replied simply. "Don't act like you don't know. He adores you, and I know why." She walked closer to Rebecca. Grabbing her chin with one hand, Siren forced Rebecca to look her in the eyes. "I'll not have you sleeping your way into our family, or into his favour," Siren replied coldly. "I'll die before I see him place the Yfel around the neck of a dirty mudblood like you."

Rebecca stared into Siren's eyes. Without warning, she spat. Siren stepped back, wiping her face with her sleeve. She let out a disgusted groan. "What is wrong with you?!" she yelled, whipping out her wand and staring at Rebecca. "Get up!" Siren yelled at Aavril and Lucius. They both stood, looking nervous and almost afraid. "Get her out of here!" Siren yelled at them. Aavril and Lucius immediately, without a word, grabbed Rebecca by the arms and dragged her out of the room while she kicked and muttered things to herself. The door slammed behind them. Siren wiped her face once more of Rebecca's saliva. Her face was screwed up, obviously appalled at what had just happened to her. She looked around, and finally took notice of Harry. 

"Awake, I see," she said, walking closer.

Harry stared back at her. His hate for her was almost gone. He wasn't under an enchantment. He didn't have any feelings for her still. He simply didn't care about the situation he was in. He was going to die, and that seemed to put a damper on his emotions, the good and the bad.

"Who was that? Harry asked her. His voice was very dull. He stared right at Siren, and she stared right back at him. He didn't fear her. He didn't care enough to fear anything for the moment.

Siren seemed like she didn't care either. She acted as though she didn't notice her own surroundings. Usually a dungeon full of caged hostages would make anyone feel a little uneasy, but Siren took no notice of it. She acted as if everything was normal.

"Rebecca Steel," Siren replied. "I'm sure Kurt told you all about her."

"Kurt?" Harry asked. "How did you know that I met Kurt?"

Siren smiled and shrugged. "A troll saw him at the school or something. Lucius helped to lure him away from th school before grandad showed up, though. Some story about a dragon going loose in Romania or something or the sort."

"That wasn't true?" Harry asked. He still didn't care. He was just curious. He needed to talk to somebody. He could feel his mind slipping with every passing moment. The room was driving him crazy. He was almost happy now that Siren was in the room with him.

"Of course it wasn't," Siren laughed. Her laugh was sweet and cheery. Harry had heard her laugh like that at school, before any of this had happened. It reminded him of a happy time in his life. He could remember it like it was yesterday. He was with his friends, walking along the lake at Hogwarts. They were with Hagrid, making their way to Hogsmeade. They were having fun. They were talking. They were careless. Hagrid was telling Hermione about the new flowers he had planted, Ron and Viktor were talking about quidditch, and Harry was staring at Siren from across the schoolyard. She was with Snape. She looked happy. Everything was right in the world.

"Too bad things had to turn out this way," Siren said, sighing and sitting on top of a wooden crate. Harry stared at her, not saying a word. "I mean," she continued, "you were actually really fun to be with. Hogwarts was fun to be at. I think I'm going to miss it all."

Harry still didn't say anything. Siren was staring at Sirius and Lupin, who still hadn't woken up. Harry would've given anything to be asleep right now. At least he wouldn't have to face reality. He wouldn't have to keep staring at Siren, wanting her. If he was asleep, he could dream dreams about Siren. He could dream about having her in his arms, laughing joyously and having fun. He could dream about Hagrid telling Hermione about his garden. He could dream about playing quidditch with Krum and Ron. He could have dreams about how things were before that fateful night with Siren.

"She's supposed to be dead," Harry though aloud. "Rebecca...that was Kurt's wife. He said she was killed."

"Yes," Siren giggled. "We _'killed'_ her all right. Rebecca is as good as dead. You see, she's a bit crazy now...she's just a torturer. Rebecca, wife of Kurt, no longer exists. Rebecca the psychotic killer, however, is very much alive."

Harry screwed up his face in disgust. "But...you send Kurt her body parts...didn't you?"

Siren giggled a bit more to herself at this. "Ah, yes. That was a muggle. We gave it some strong Polyjuice Potion to make it look like Rebecca. I'm sure if you were to dig up the parts now, they're resemble the rotten pieces of a stranger, not Rebecca."

Harry shook his head. Poor Kurt, he thought He shook his head. It no longer mattered. Harry would die soon anyways. He'd have no time to tell Kurt that Rebecca was still alive.

"What day is it?" he asked her, finally finding his voice again.

Siren shrugged. "Beats me," she answered. "I've been asleep, too. I think it's only been about twelve hours since we brought you here." She looked at Harry. There was something in her eyes that Harry hadn't seen before. She looked like she wanted to say something really bad, but just couldn't. She took a deep breath and said, "Harry...I know how bad this looks. If things were different-"

"If things were different I'd have never met you," Harry interrupted. He looked sourly upon her. She was trying to trick him again. He wouldn't succumb to her lies anymore. He wasn't going to give up without a fight.

"That's true," Siren replied slowly. "I just meant – if I could have it my way, you wouldn't be here."

"Really," Harry laughed. His anger was slowly coming back with each word that came out of Siren's mouth. "It seems to me like you've been trying to get me here all year."

"I didn't mean that," Siren added quickly. "I would have killed you by now, but He won't let me. If it were up to me, I'd just have it over and done with."

Harry shook his head at her and looked away. He stared at Sirius and Lupin. Lupin's hand moved...he was waking up. Harry didn't say anything. He didn't want Siren to notice.

"So why are you here?" Harry asked, trying to distract her. "Did you come to seduce me again?"

Siren smirked. "No," she said indignantly. "I came to see if you were awake. My grandfather wants to see you."

"Then tell him to come," Harry said rudely. "Tell him to stop sending you. I don't want to see you anymore."

Siren looked down upon him as though he was filth. "I'll just leave, then," Siren replied coldly. "But trust me, Harry," she added with an evil smile, "once Rebecca plays with you, you'll be absolutely _dying_ to have me by your side. At least my kind of torture is fun." With that, she turned on her heel and left the room. Whether or not there were guards outside of the room, Harry didn't know. He was willing to take his chances. Harry sat down, and tried to best to find a way to break the cage and get out. He couldn't. Still sitting, he called to Sirius and Lupin. Lupin was still again. He hadn't woken up as Harry had hoped.

"Sirius!" he said loudly. Nothing. Sirius and Lupin remained asleep, motionless in their cages. Harry gave up and leaned against the back of his cage. He sat Indian style, leaning forward in an attempt to loosen his back. His whole body was cramped, and it felt horrible to move. While stretching, he caught a glimpse of under his shoe. There were some pebbles stuck in the grips of it. Harry picked them off, and began to throw them at Sirius and Lupin. Lupin stirred a bit more, but still wouldn't wake.

"Dammit," Harry muttered under his breath. He looked towards the door, and the cage full of muggles next to it caught his eye. One of them was awake, and obviously terrified. It was a little girl, about six or seven years old.

"Are you alright?" Harry called out to her. She warily shook her head yes. Harry felt a swell of pity building up in his stomach. He couldn't bear to imagine what would happen to her. He wanted to make the little girl unafraid. He knew what she must be going through.

"My name's Harry," he said to her, more gently this time. "What's yours?"

This girl looked at him for a bit, then shyly replied in a very quiet voice, "Kayla."

Before Harry could say anything more, the door opened. Light shone in from the lit torches outside, and Harry was blinded again for a moment. Straining his eyes against the brightness, Harry managed to see who it was. Voldemort swiftly made his way into the room. Harry stood very still, a vain hope within him thinking that the Dark Lord would neglect to notice him. Still, Harry knew that this meeting would have to come sooner or later.

"Siren told me your were insistent upon seeing me," Voldemort said, his voice cold with malice.

Harry said nothing. Still his vain little hopes persisted. He didn't want to be noticed.

Voldemort took a few more strides towards Harry. Harry, his eyes still partially blinded by the light which had only just shone through the door, fought to make out Voldemort's face in the shadows. All he could see were his eyes, which looked very different from the eyes he had seen in his dreams. He always remembered Voldemort's red, snake-like stare. Now, however, they were very human, and very green. They looked just like Harry's.

"I suppose you'd like to know why you're here," Voldemort continued, glancing down upon Sirius and Lupin. He gave a smirk, then returned his stare to Harry.

Harry swallowed uneasily. "To kill me, I'm assuming."

Voldemort let out an involuntary laugh. "Yes," he said, nodding his head in agreement, "that would make sense. After all, I have been waiting for over 15 years, now, to do it. So, why spare you when my powers are greater than they have ever been before?" Voldemort asked him this as if Harry was supposed to know the answer. Voldemort paused, waiting for Harry to put in his two cents. 

Harry, too, waited for a reply. "I don't know..."

Voldemort sighed. His voice seemed to take on a more pleasant tone, as though he enjoyed spoiling his plans in front of his arch nemesis. "Because," Voldemort continued, taking a few more steps towards Harry's cage, "I want to make you suffer, as you have made me suffer."

Harry gawked. "_I've_ made _you_ suffer?! I've been living in fear ever since I found out I was a wizard! Don't even try to pin this whole thing on me. _You_ killed my parents! _You_ started this!"

Voldemort scowled at him. "No, Harry. You've suffered emotionally. I've physically hurt you a few times, but you have no idea what sort of torment my body has been through ever since that damned night over 14 years ago..." Voldemort hissed at the memory, squinting his eyes even more in distaste at Harry. "You..." he continued, his patience waning. "You will suffer. You believe that death is what you want now, but just wait until I've had my fun with you - you, and those closest to you. You'll beg for mercy, not death." Voldemort paused. "You shall receive neither, of course."

Harry looked down upon Sirius and Lupin, suddenly aware of why Siren and Voldemort had kept them alive. Harry's heartbeat picked up a pace as he turned his glare back to Voldemort. "No..."

Voldemort gave an evil cackle. "Rebecca," he called out. "It's time to play, dearest."

Harry looked to the door as Rebecca Steel entered the room once again. She held her head low, gazing up to Voldemort with her soulless, blank eyes.

"The Masquerade is ready?" she asked. Voldemort raised an eyebrow at her. Walking slowly to her, he put one hand upon her shoulder. 

"Indeed it is ready, my sweet," he answered her. His voice took on a tone of anticipation as he guided her towards Sirius and Lupin. "I want you to play with these two. Don't kill them. Just have some fun." He looked to Harry. "If this one gives you trouble, petrify him, but make sure that he's watching what you're doing."

Rebecca tilted her head to look at Sirius and Lupin. Turning around, she gazed upon the other cages. "What about the confused ones?" she asked him, obviously trying to refer to the muggle hostages.

Voldemort gave a thin smile. "Do what you will with them. I brought them here for your entertainment, after all. Kill them, you'd like." 

Reaching his hand up, Voldemort pulled a dagger out of thin air. It shone brilliantly as the candles from outside of the room sparkled in its reflection. Voldemort handed it to Rebecca, and turned her around to face Lupin and Sirius once again. He bent down behind her shoulder so that his face was at the same level as hers. "Have fun, princess," he whispered into her ear. He stood back up to full height again, a nasty grimace upon his face. 

Harry's scar burned sharply as he stared back at him. "No..."

Voldemort gave Harry a wicked, satisfied stare, then turned around to leave the room. Harry couldn't let him just leave like this. Banging and pounding upon his cage, he yelled after Voldemort. "NO!!"

Voldemort, without looking back, left the room, the door locking behind him.

"NO!" Harry yelled after him. "I'LL KILL YOU!! I SWEAR I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!" He pounded his fists upon his cage in fury. His anger was seething. He wanted badly to wring out Voldemort's neck with his bare hands. Harry, however, was still trapped within his tiny cage, unable to hurt a fly. 

Rebecca swooped in front of his cage, coming face to face with him. Her face was cold and calculating, and she held the dagger with both hands by its handle.

"Even elephants are afraid of mice," she said to him quietly. "Now...let's play."

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Huzzah!! I hope you enjoyed it, especially you Becca ;)

  
  


-Summer

  
  
  
  
  



	17. Chapter 14 Scene Extension

Right, I got a warning from someone about fanficion.net being sensitive about sexual content and such, so if you wanna read the extended love scene between Harry and Siren, go to greatestjournal dot com and find the user ReginaSerpente (its me). Look in that journal to read it.

I'm sorry if some people find it offensive, but its no worse than most mature HP stories you'll find on the net :) 

Nobody's forcing you to go there, so yeah... don't get mad at me if you don't like it :)

Again, thanks for reading!

-Summa!


	18. Lessons in Pain

Sorry this has been taking me so long. School was such a bitch-ass this semester, and I actually got a decent boyfriend this summer who's been forcing me into have some sort of a life outside of the computer room.

Um, this chapter will be short. It's just about Harry being tortured, then having a nice chat with Voldie.

Anyways, here are my replies to your fun and excited reviews ;)

Szelij : no worries, I have no intention to kill off Siren. Not yet at least. Who knows, maybe I'll change my mind at some point. Something bad will happen to her at the end, though.

Ali : thank you, you're awesome too :)

Nagini Animagus : thank you as well. I'm glad you like it.

FrozenOnyxPhoenix : I'm assuming you've read ahead and know the answers by now.

Gem: glomps

Friendly Advice Giver : I'm sorry I told you to suck my ass (since chances are that I know you...). I was just in a bad mood. Thanks for the comment, though. I was still relatively young when I started this book (it was right after the fourth came out), so that would hopefully explain the crappiness that is the first few chapters of this fanfic.

_**Chapter 17: Lessons in Pain**_

Many days must have passed before Harry started begging; begging to be spared, begging to be killed, and begging for his parents. It had been days in his mind, at least. The pain being so graciously given to him was unbearable, and he felt as though death would've been a kind gesture at this point. _Once Rebecca plays with you, you'll be absolutely dying to have me by your side. _Siren's last words to Harry haunted him like the remnants of a bad dream, and the words repeated themselves over and over again until Harry was sure he'd go mad – not to say, of course, that he hadn't yet been driven to the brink of insanity by Rebecca's eagerness to make him scream as loud as was humanly possible. He watched as she began to bounce around happily while singing a jolly tune, walking around the room and examining the cages of the other prisoners who were still unconscious. The fact that even Lupin and Sirius were still passed out made Harry wonder if so much time had really passed as he'd originally estimated. People didn't remain unconscious for days at a time, after all, did they? Harry remembered spending days in the infirmary at Hogwarts, but noted that even he had awoken at least once every now and then. Sirius and Lupin had barely budged. Normal people do not remain unconscious for so long . . . do they? _Coma patients do_, he thought to himself. He really hoped that they weren't so incapacitated.

"Bloody ashes, torn eyelashes, deadly bashes, potato mashes . . . "

Harry fought to lift his head a bit higher so that he could see where Rebecca was. She had let him out of his cage, and was now letting him rest for a while on the floor. Why she was letting him rest, he did not know. Perhaps she was too tired from cutting, pounding, burning, and breaking him to give a damn about putting him back in his cage. As he cocked his head slightly up and to the side, he saw her hovering above him. He didn't know how he had ended up lying on his back. Last he checked, his body had formed a small ball against the floor, but he was now in the middle of the room, and Rebecca wasn't the only one watching him. Slowly moving his eyes past Rebecca, he could see two very familiar faces in the cages behind her. Sirius and Lupin were awake. Sirius was sitting down, his leg looking rather messy, and Lupin was standing, both hands upon the bars of the cage. Harry could have sworn they were still out cold only a few moments ago . . .

"Hmm," he said, his mouth too swollen to form any real words.

"Harry, don't move," Sirius told him, his voice calm and resolute. "Whatever happens, stay where you are. Trust me."

It didn't take long for Rebecca to rush over to their cage and stick her dagger quickly through the bars. Sirius yelled out in pain, though Harry couldn't see what had happened to him. "Be mute!" Rebecca yelled at Sirius, her voice raspy, as though she had been yelling for hours. She looked at Harry, pointing the dagger in his direction. "Over his grave, be mute!"

"What grave?" Harry murmured, feeling very disoriented. He moved on his side, trying to sit up only slightly when he felt something hot smacking him in the forehead. He fell backwards, sliding across the floor a few feet.

"You," Rebecca snarled, her face twisted into an expression of deep loathing. "You will be mute! Be mute, or be dead! It is not up to the hand to decide, young hero."

Harry reached up to rub his head. He gently grazed his fingers across his scar, feeling the lines of it and noting that they were more defined now than they were before. His scar hurt at the touch, and he cringed. His body felt like an entire bruise, and by the way his mind was thinking he was sure that he had something equivalent to a high fever. Random thoughts were running through his head, as though he was trying to read a book and do his Potions homework all at the same time. _Head trauma?_ He thought to himself. _Yes, I think so._

Harry looked up at Rebecca, and immediately discovered that his glasses had been lost at some point. Everything was blurry. If he hadn't heard Sirius' voice earlier, he would have now been second-guessing his assumption that Sirius and Lupin were awake. From a distance, they looked like they could have been anyone.

"Sirius!" Harry couldn't help but call out to him, though his words were very slurred. "Sirius, help me!" he cried, trying to stand up. He was able to sit up fairly straight, but his legs did not feel like they would be able to hold him up should he try to stand. He pulled up his pants to expose his ankles, seeing large red marks and specks of blood upon them. Letting his hand touch it gently, he noted that he could not feel a thing. His legs were numb. He choked out a yell, terribly afraid that she had paralyzed him. He backed away as he saw her shadow appear upon his legs, and looked up. She was hovering over him, a dagger in hand. "The piggies want to go home," she said as she crouched down, grabbing one of his feet and holding it in her hands between her knees. Harry could see up her dress, and noticed that she was wearing no underwear. She was fully exposed, and Harry couldn't help but stare for a moment before shaking his head and focusing once again on the dagger within her hands. It was getting closer to his toes, and a sick feeling in his stomach told him that she would not hesitate to cut them all off. He looked at his hands, making sure that his fingers weren't gone. They were still there, but for how long? Rebecca was crazy. She wouldn't spare him.

"This little piggy went to the market," she said slowly, quietly, holding onto one of his toes. She moved her grasp to the next. "This little piggy stayed home." She moved to his big toe, holding it firmly between her thumb and index finger. "This little piggy right here . . . he got cut off, and was thrown all the way down into the sewer . . ."

"No!" Harry yelled, wanting to move his legs but not being able to. He was about to strike her with his hands before he heard the door opening once again. His hands instead moved to his forehead, grabbing at his scar painfully. It was burning like mad, and no wonder. Voldemort had just entered the room. Rebecca immediately stood up and ran to him, looking like she was about to tackle him.

"I made him hurt," she said deviously, licking her lips as she leaned into him, clutching the fabric upon his chest with her hands. "Do you have a present for mummy?"

Voldemort simply stared at Harry, observing Rebecca's work. "Later," he said, pushing her aside gently, much to Rebecca's disappointment. Voldemort eyed Remus and Sirius threateningly. "Try to move, and I'll have you maimed," he warned, his voice low and cold.

"Trying to say we aren't already?" Sirius snapped back daringly, shaking the bars upon his cage viciously with his hands.

Voldemort, with a flick of his wrist, made the cage which held Sirius and Lupin swing wide open. Sirius flew out of it as though an invisible rope was tugging at his mid-section. The door closed before Lupin could escape as well, and Sirius was not thrown up against the wall, hanging in a position that looked like a cross. He let out a yell as Voldemort conjured large, iron nails to pin Sirius' hands and feet to the wall, resembling that of a legendary muggle martyr. With a satisfied grin, Voldemort aimed his wand at Sirius. "Silencio," he whispered nonchalantly, successfully silencing Sirius. That done, he now turned his attention to Harry, who was still grasping desperately at his scar.

"I made him bleed . . ." Rebecca said quietly as she stood at the Dark Lord's side. "I'll be making him bleed more," she added, an insatiable tone to her voice.

"Not now," Voldemort told her sternly, stepping closer to Harry. He crouched down, his head nearly level with Harry's before he reached out to touch the scar upon the boy's forehead, causing Harry's body to jolt as a wave of lightning-hot pain surged through his entire body.

"No . . ." Harry murmured, trying to move his battered body away from his enemy's touch, though without success. He was backed up against a wall, and simply trying to adjust his eyes to the lighting in the room caused him a great deal of physical torment. He was broken, frail, and hopeless. There was no way out of this, and even if there was, Harry had absolutely no motivation to escape.

It seemed as though Voldemort could sense this, and he sighed in a way which would imply that he understood Harry's situation completely. "It is such an unpleasant feeling, is it not?" he asked, withdrawing his finger from Harry's scar. "I, too, once saw the grim reaper shining the glaring light of his scythe into my face. I've stared death in the eyes one too many times in my lifetime, Harry. I know what you must be going through." Inhaling deeply, Voldemort stood up, looking down at Harry with no clear expression or feeling. "It's frightening, knowing that you're going to die," the Dark Lord added, folding his hands calmly behind his back, grasping his wand loosely. It was apparent that he did not feel threatened by Harry now, especially in this state. The boy was as good as dead already. There was nothing he could do to stop Voldemort now. "Believe it or not, Harry, I admire your courage. There is but one thing that I would regret after killing you, and it is that I know I will never meet another wizard quite like you. You have been my greatest foe, and I must say that I shall miss having that. Once you are gone, Dumbledore won't stand a chance, and then nobody in this wide world will be able to stop me. You are my only competition. As much as I shall enjoy not having such competition around, I will undoubtedly miss having something left to conquer; something left to prove myself against."

Exhaling heavily, Voldemort turned his back on Harry. "Siren and I shall rule the world together," he said after a brief pause. "Nobody will stop us. The Slytherins will be avenged, and the faults of our muggle heritage negated." Again he paused, looking at Sirius momentarily, and then to Lupin. It was hard for one to believe that Harry would ever turn on them, but torture _had_ been invented for a reason, and that was to sway the minds of victims – Harry's included. "I shall offer this to you once, and only once, Harry." Voldemort did not turn to face him as he continued speaking. "Join forces with me. We could bring about powerful, new magic, as Salazar and Godric once hoped to do together. Join me, and your friends will be spared. Join me, and you may love my granddaughter with not vice nor guilt. Decline, however . . ." He now started to walk toward the door. "And you shall die with the rest of them, and never see Siren again. I'll come back tomorrow for an answer."

The door opened, and Voldemort exited the room with Rebecca in tow, leaving Harry in a vexing situation. The offer was tempting, but was sacrificing his soul worth protecting his friends? Was morally commending Voldemort's way of life worth having his beautiful Siren in his arms once again?


End file.
